PUTRAJAYA: Gyms, indoor sports venues and snooker centres will be allowed to resume operations from June 15.
Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob however said operators must first fill up a notification form at the International Trade and Industry Ministry (MITI) website, which will be made available from today.
This, he said, would also allow monitoring by the Youth and Sports Ministry and a reference for standard operating procedures (SOPs) under the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO), which begins on Wednesday.
"Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican will announce this in detail soon.
"The special ministerial meeting on the RMCO has agreed to allow the reopening of businesses related to gyms, halls, snooker centres and other sports centres from June 15.
"The meeting also agreed for the public to be allowed to carry out sports and recreational activities without bodily contact for indoor and outdoor facilities starting from June 15.
"This will include, among others, badminton, athletics, two or four-wheel motorsports, weightlifting and extreme sports like skydiving, skating as well recreational activities like yoga and aerobics.
"These will be allowed, provided social distancing of between one and three-meters is adhered to for static sports like weightlifting as well as running on a treadmill," he told a press conference today.
He said while training for combat sports like taekwondo is allowed, it has to be done individually, without involving physical contact with others.
For dynamic sports like running and team sports like football, hockey and rugby, training sessions could be conducted with a social distance of between three and five metres being enforced, and that no competitions can be held.
Meanwhile, watersports like swimming in both public and private residence pools are still prohibited.
"I would like to remind the public that tournaments and sports competitions are still not allowed, to prevent mass gatherings, despite suggestions to hold sports matches without an audience.
"In principle, under the prohibitions listed under Phase 2 of the reopening of the sports and recreation sector, there would be no competitions and tournaments for body contact sports and team sports, no combat sports like silat and taekwondo, and no activities allowed in swimming pools including those in condominiums," he added.