Gymnastic schools, indoor sports operators say they should be allowed to reopen
HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - Athletes and gym operators on Oahu say they’re frustrated with the city’s rules for indoor sports and feel a one-size-fits-all approach isn’t fair.
Gymnastic schools currently fall under the same umbrella as fitness gyms, which means they can only operate outdoors under Tier 1 of the city’s plan.
But Erin Pakele, program manager at Hawaiian Island Twisters, said it’s not realistic for their sport.
“Gymnastics traditionally, we always needed to have social distancing because of our sport itself,” said Pakele. “You can’t really tumble with somebody close to you or kick to a hand stand or any of that."
"Traditionally our sport has always been an individual activity.”
Seven Oahu gymnastics facilities plan rallied Tuesday morning outside Honolulu Hale to ask the city to allow them to operate indoors under Tier 1.
“For it to extend three months and then be back in for six weeks and then closed and then not open is really devastating,” said Cora Fonseca, owner of Rainbow Gymnastics Academy. “And this situation is the reason why we have to do something together as an industry to educate the government.”
Other indoor athletics facilities, like the Kapolei Indoor Hockey Arenas, have been closed since March 13. With the city’s reopening plan, Jami Yoder, the rink’s hockey director, says it’s difficult to determine when they’ll be able to open their doors again.
Yoder said KIHA joins gymnasts in calling for a rule that treats each sport differently.
“I personally feel the hockey community is ready to come back, we’re ready to take any kind of steps we need to take whether it’s dressing outdoors and taking temperatures and stuff like that just so we can get back on the skates,” said Yoder.
The city said decisions related to Honolulu’s COVID-19 Recovery Framework and the order implementing Tier 1 were made by the mayor, approved by the governor, with guidance from doctors and epidemiologists from the state Department of Health.
The city said in a statement:
“It has been a challenging process to decide how and when to reopen safely and the City has aimed for balance based on science and data. All businesses want to reopen as soon as possible, and the City would like to allow all businesses, no matter the public health risks, to reopen so that we can “go back to normal.” We all know, however, that a “new normal” requires a gradual reopening. Otherwise, all of us will be faced with increasing numbers of positive cases and a “surge” that will require further restrictions. Honolulu’s COVID-19 Recovery Framework is designed to allow “low risk” businesses and operations to reopen in Tier 1 based on public health concerns. This means some businesses will have to wait until we see that the spread of the virus is controlled and manageable. We will never be able to return to a healthy economy until we control the spread of the disease.”
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