'It's game on.' Sports organizations looking forward to athletes' return
Since sports came to a halt earlier this month, athletes have anxiously waited to get back into the game. As Ontario begins lifting restrictions on Jan. 31, coaches are preparing to give their athletes back a sense of normalcy.
Current restrictions have halted sports and recreational facilities to close, but come next week, they will be allowed to open at 50 per cent capacity.
“It's game on,” said Tony Martindale, the executive director of Alliance Hockey. “We’re back to getting kids back onto the ice which is really important.”
In order to get back into the game safely, sports organizations will have to operate with fewer people on and off the court.
For tennis coach Anthony Glavanic, it’s been a frustrating time.
“If I’m at least going to follow the rules I expect a payback, my payback was a shut down so I’m very upset because I did everything right,” he said.
“The tennis court is 78 feet long, basically we’re 100 feet apart. But now we’re moving on and we are going to open again on the 31st.”
Even though the past month has been challenging for Ontarians, many coaches are looking forward to welcoming their athletes back.
When returning to the field, David DeBenedictis, the director of soccer at London TFC academy and FC London said, “It might start off with no spectators, just the players will be allowed and we’re fine with that as the coaching staff.”
“It’s the social development and mental health that they need to get back to and getting back to the field is the first step.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.