Obligatory mask for outdoor physical activity but not for runners: what the Viminale says

The use of the mask is mandatory outdoors even for those who do motor activity. The Interior Ministry specified this in one circular signed yesterday evening by the head of cabinet Bruno Frattasi with which clarifications are given to the prefects on the decree approved on 7 October last. The provision that provides for the use of the mask “exempts from the obligation of use – writes Frattasi – only those who have sporting activity in progress and not the motor one, not exempted, however, from the obligation in question”. In other words, basic motor activity, such as the walk, without using the mask. For physical activity, the ministry underlines, “must be understood as a mere walk and not a run, even that carried out for amateur purposes, as it can be traced back to sports”. So, he concludes, “jogging e footing they can continue to take place without the obligation of a mask “.

When the use of the mask outdoors is mandatory

In the drafts of the decree circulated in recent days it was written that “those who are doing sports or motor activities” were exempt from the obligation to use the mask, but in the text published in the Gazzetta the exemption remained only for those who do sports . Remember, on the basis of the provisions of the latest decree approved by the Government to cope with the Coronavirus emergency in force until next October 15, the use of the mask even outdoors is mandatory, with sanctions ranging from 400 to 1000 euros for those who do not respect the provision. The personal protective equipment must always be with you, unless you are in a situation of continuous isolation. “Children under the age of six and people with pathologies or disabilities incompatible with the use of the mask are not obliged to wear the protective device (they must however show a valid medical certificate), as well as those who interact with the aforementioned in the same incompatibility “.

Difference between motor and sports activity

As the Ministry of Health on its website, according to WHO, for “physical activity” we mean “any movement determined by the musculoskeletal system that results in an expenditure of energy higher than that of resting conditions”. This definition, we read, includes not only sporting activities, but also simple movements such as walking, cycling, dancing, playing, gardening and housework, which are part of “spontaneous motor activity”. Therefore, “the expression” motor activity “is basically synonymous with physical activity, while it is sport includes structured competitive situations and subject to very specific rules. It is an institutionalized game, codified in such a way as to be recognized and recognizable by all for rules and mechanisms, to which reference is made for its practice in official or unofficial contexts “.

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