Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak gave a green light Friday to the resumption of youth and adult recreational non-contact sports. The Governor's directive puts in place specific details on how some non-contact and limited contact sports can resume starting Saturday. Professional and college sports do not fall under the directive. Sports like baseball, softball, track and field and golf can begin play, while full-contact sports such as football, rugby and wrestling will stay sidelined for now. Tournaments can begin October 24 if all safety guidelines are met.
“We wish to thank Governor Sisolak for allowing games to resume,” said Clark County Commissioner Larry Brown, a former collegiate and professional baseball player who is involved in youth sports locally. “From our youngest athletes to our senior softball players, playing sports will be extremely beneficial to their physical and mental well-being.”
Under the guidelines, coaches and managers must assign a monitor to make sure people associated with the team are maintaining six-feet of social distancing and are wearing masks.
“We look forward to the opportunity to get our kids out on the fields and competing, particularly in light of the fact that there are few alternatives for them other than youth sports at this time," said Guy Hobbs, president of Nevada Youth Soccer. "We fully recognize the opportunity that’s being given to the kids and we’ll do everything possible to ensure that the programs are executed in strict accordance with all the protocols set forth by the state and local governments."
The Governor also talked about high school sports, saying the NIAA maintains control in that space and will continue to determine timing when it will be allowed to resume. The NIAA says it will reserve comment on Friday's order to better analyze what the directive means to their member schools.