Rules For School Contact Sports Defined By Ohio Health Department

COLUMBUS, OH — The Ohio Department of Health has clarified which sports will be subject to extensive COVID-19 testing before moving forward.

The following sports were defined as "contact" sports: football, basketball, rugby, field hockey, soccer, lacrosse, wrestling, hockey, boxing, futsal and martial arts with opponents. Student athletes participating in those sports will need to receive a COVID-19 test 72 hours before the start of a competition and must have the results in hand.

If athletes don't have the COVID-19 test, they are only allowed to participate in intra-squad scrimmages, the department said. Certain counties have recommended suspending sports activity due to the spread of COVID-19 locally.

“It is important to keep athletic activity moving forward,” said Dan Leffingwell, president of the OHSAA Board of Directors. “And with that, we believe our member schools provide our student-athletes with the safest possible environment to return to play and that our school programs are the best avenue to help students learn lifelong lessons and provide social, emotional and physical benefits that other programs cannot. Moving forward allows those students to continue to be engaged with their school coaches and teammates. Membership data also supports this decision.”