Hanover School Division athletes are finally donning their team jerseys again.

Like many extracurricular activities, the division’s athletics department was left sitting on the bench for some time as provincial officials figured out how to best compete against the COVID-19 pandemic. As Superintendent Colin Campbell indicates, Sports Manitoba has now issued a small list of allowances for this semester.

With respect to that list, the approved athletics in Hanover right now are hockey, soccer, football, cross country running, and golf.

“We’ve had to make some adjustments but it is good to see kids playing outdoors on our fields,” he says.

Many sports, though offered in a school setting for the first time in months, are veering off from traditional gameplay to comply with provincial health and safety regulations. Campbell uses football as an example. noting that recommendations to maintain a physical distance of two metres between players makes certain drills and, of course, tackling virtually obsolete.

“If you go and watch a football practice, it might not look like football out there, but kids will be enjoying their time as a team.”

Campbell says the “Orange” designation of the Pandemic Response Level in Niverville and Landmark schools right now means their athletes have a few more restrictions on them. In many cases, those teams are permitted to hold practices but not engage any other schools.

Acknowledging that sports are an intimate matter for a lot of students, Campbell says he has been impressed by the respect and receptiveness they have shown to the recent changes to their favorite passtimes. For those quarterbacks, goalies, and sprinters who have been longing for some form of organized physical activity, the ability to do so seems to be a godsend.

“We are getting some really positive feedback from schools and families,” elaborates Campbell. “To know that they have practice at the end of the day, that is what helps a number of our students get up in the morning and motivates them to complete their studies.”

There is no playbook when it comes to facing the virus, but Campbell believes his division and, by extension, the provincial health authorities are doing a pretty great job.