17 March 2020
- Season Start Suspended until 31 May 2020
- State Trials Postponed
- Masters Hockey National Championships Postponed
I am sure you are all well aware of the coronavirus situation and are curious about what this means to Masters Hockey in WA, the National Championships later this year in Queensland and also World Championships later this year in Europe, Japan and South Africa.
The situation is being monitored carefully by Hockey Australia (HA), Hockey WA (HWA), and this committee (WAMHC).
HWA has today (17 March) taken the decision to suspend all WA hockey competitions, events and activities until May 31st 2020.
HA has today (17 March) postponed the Masters Hockey National Championships scheduled to be held in June and July to a later date. HA will work with the HA Masters Committee and stakeholders to identify a suitable option for these matches to be played.
Based on the above and recent global updates and information available to the WAMHC, we have decided to postpone the up-coming trials (Sat 21st/Sun 22nd, Wed 25th, Sat 28th/Sun 29th March) for State Teams until at least 31 May, in accordance with the HWA announcement for the season, at which point we will reassess the situation and determine next steps.
This decision is being made to ensure that we are taking the highest care and risk management of our playing community and the broader community as a whole and to reduce the spread of coronavirus throughout our hockey community. We regard the health and wellbeing of players, coaches, officials and staff at all levels within our sport as our highest priority. It is important that as individuals we each play a responsible role in ensuring the spread of COVID19 is slowed to a point where our health services can cope.
On 8 March, HA announced that it has cancelled all overseas travel for all hockey teams including Masters Teams – until further notice. Planning for overseas world cups is continuing at present on the expectation that they will occur later in the year.
We recommend you refer to the following web sites for the latest advice on managing the situation regarding the COVID-19 virus:
- WA Health Department:
https://healthywa.wa.gov.au/coronavirus - Australian Government, Department of Health, Health Alert:
https://www.health.gov.au/news/health-alerts/novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov-health-alert - World Health Organisation:
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
It is not our intention to cause undue alarm or concern but rather to help our community to be as prepared as possible and to be fit for hockey when we are able to return to training and games.
As recent media indicates this is a rapidly changing situation and we will communicate any changes to the above, as soon as practicable.
Regards
WA Masters Hockey Committee
Useful Links:
Hockey WA - https://hockeywa.org.au/hockey-wa-statement-covid-19/
Hockey Australia - https://hockey.org.au/hockey-australia-covid-19-statement/
Hockey Australia Masters - http://www.hockeyaustraliamasters.org.au/mens/hockey-australias-travel-ban-to-affect-masters-teams/
FIH - http://fih.ch/news/statement-on-the-coronavirus-covid-19-from-the-fih-health-safety-committee/