As leaders of many federations around the world plan to organize a totally atypical hockey season starting next September due to the COVID-19 pandemic, their counterparts in the Finnish Hockey Federation (FFH) hope to be able to launch their 2020-2021 activities as normal.
Finnish arenas will even reopen on June 1. This means that hockey players will be able to start their summer training in the normal way.
The country, which has a population of around 5.6 million, has registered only 6,443 cases of infection and 304 deaths caused by COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic. Despite everything, the return to the rinks will be done under fairly strict conditions, in particular:
– Training groups cannot be changed. We will not be able to add new members over the weeks.
– A player may not be forced to participate in training sessions and his absences will not affect his membership in the team.
– The circulation in the arena must be done in such a way that the players who access the ice will not have to cross the previous group.
– Exercises that are not technical and specific to hockey (physical fitness, for example) must be done outside.
– Physical contact will be allowed, but exercises specifically involving physical contact should be avoided.
– Players will need to wash their hands when entering and exiting the arena.
– Each player will need to bring their own towel and bottle of water.
– No spitting.
– Ban on touching other players’ equipment.
– The socks and underwear must be washed in hot water after each session and the rest of the equipment must be well dried.
– The players must present themselves just before the start of the session and leave immediately after.
– Players will have to show up at the arena already dressed in some of their equipment and should, as much as possible, take a shower at home. If the shower is taken at the arena, each player must have their own shampoo and soap.
– A safe space of two meters must be respected between the players in the locker room.
– If a player has symptoms of COVID-19, the entire group will be immediately placed in quarantine until the symptomatic player has produced negative tests.
However, the Finns have no plans to change the rules so far, but planning for the next season will start by early July, Pirkka Antila, chief operating officer of the FFH, reveals.
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