News Detail
March 9, 2020 - Message from General Chair Regarding Coronavirus
March 9, 2020
Message to Pacific Swimming Membership on COVID19
I know that many of our members are concerned and fearful regarding the coronavirus outbreak we are currently experiencing. As it should be, a parent primary priority is to safeguard the health and safety of their children. For this reason, each parent must take responsibility for deciding whether their children should participate in swim meets. However, I would urge you not to make this decision based on fear but rather on the best recommendations and guidance from our public health experts as well as input from your children’s coaches.
Pacific Swimming covers a large and diverse geographical area and each area will likely be affected differently by coronavirus. Our recommendation to clubs hosting swim meets will be to follow the recommendations of the county and/or city health departments in whose jurisdiction the various meets will be held.
We are in the middle of a rapidly evolving situation which we will continue to closely monitor. You should expect that guidance will change as we gain knowledge about this novel virus and the best ways to mitigate exposure to it. Parents should monitor the websites of clubs hosting swim meets for the latest status of their upcoming meets. The health and safety of our swimmers is our top concern, and at least for the next several months, swim meets may be subject to last minute cancellation. However, please remember that cancelling a swim meet denies swimmers the opportunity to compete and denies parents the choice as to whether their swimmers should participate.
Finally, I would like to remind you of current public health risk mitigation guidance:
- Anyone in your family who has a fever and/or other respiratory symptoms should avoid attending swim meets or any large public gatherings. Stay home if you are sick.
- Those individuals over 70 years of age and/or anyone who has underlying health conditions should avoid attending swim meets or any large public gatherings.
- Everyone who does attend should take standard precautions as they would to help prevent any respiratory illness including frequent hand washing and not touching their face, nose or mouth.
Regards,
David Cottam
General Chair
Pacific Swimming
