Gymnasiums told to stay closed just before they were to open

By BBN Staff: Gymnasiums were hoping to reopen next week, however, the latest COVID-19 measures being rolled out by the Ministry of Health and Wellness (MOHW) have cut those hopes short.

In response to a rising number of infections and deaths from the virus, the MOHW announced a suite of interventions including scaled-up testing, the re-institution of curfews, and that gyms need to remain closed. The announcement came on November 26, while gyms were given a reopening date of November 30, by the now-disbanded National COVID-19 Oversight Committee (NOC).

The National Fitness Association (NFA) had previously called on authorities to reconsider their position on closing down gyms citing major economic losses being suffered by gym owners, as well as there being no scientific evidence to support the notion that gyms are an area that will increase the spread of the virus. The NFA had compiled a comprehensive reopening plan and submitted it to the NOC, back in October, only to be told to wait until the end of November to reopen.

The NFA argued at that time that several other businesses were allowed to open that factually proved to be more of a risk to spread the virus than gyms.

This week, the gym Burn Box in Belize City announced that it would be closing down, as the forced closure for the past six months due to the pandemic has been devastating to the business. With no clear indication of when gyms will be allowed to reopen, there is a growing fear that many facilities will have to take similar measures if the situation persists.

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