Following further information and clarification about the activities being allowed to resume following yesterday’s Government statement, we regret to say that indoor table tennis activity will not be able to return from July 4.
Whilst community centres and similar facilities may re-open there is a strong recommendation from government that sports and fitness sessions do not resume at this time.
We will continue to lobby and work with key parties to ensure sport can return as soon as it is safe to do so and that the guidance that will accompany the reopening of facilities is published as soon as possible, to give time for us all to prepare.
There are indications from the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Oliver Dowden, that the Government is looking at mid-July for the re-opening of sports facilities, as the tweet below shows. However, this is not a confirmed timeframe and no official roadmap has yet been set.
GYMS
Many people keen to hit the gym & keeping Britain fit is key in Covid battle
We’ve made lots of progress & I know steps businesses have taken to make their spaces & equipment safe
Subject to public health, our aspiration is to reopen gyms & leisure facilities in mid-July
— Oliver Dowden (@OliverDowden) June 23, 2020
We will continue to update our members as soon as more information becomes available.
Table Tennis England was among a number of sports to seek further clarification from the Government after yesterday’s announcement. Here is the text of our statement which appeared on this website yesterday:
We are disappointed that today’s announcement contained inconsistencies around which facilities will or will not be allowed to open from July 4 and did not refer to a specific date for the reopening of indoor facilities such as leisure centres and sports clubs.
However, despite this lack of clarity, we are cautiously optimistic about the general positive steps being taken by the Government as we continue to work towards returning to indoor sport including table tennis.
We understand that the lack of clarity around the current information is extremely challenging for clubs to plan ahead, but rest assured we are in constant contact with Sport England, the Sport and Recreation Alliance and other National Governing Bodies, who are working on behalf of all sports to seek clarification from the Government. We will issue further updates as soon as we can.
We continue to work hard behind the scenes to guide and prepare our clubs and players for the time when we can return. Click here to visit our Ready to Return section.