THE NEW NORMAL OF SPORTS OR IS IT? (BIO-BUBBLE EXPLAINED)

We have seen how badly our lives have been affected by corona-virus. We are now well acquainted with this new normal. With reopening of almost everything from schools in some countries to even colleges and theatres. It's now perhaps the right time to restart sports, or is it? But, stringent policies mean that safety of all the players is ensured with utmost priority. What are these policies or norms? How do they actually work? What are the negative aspects of these in the long run despite positive short-term effects? What is this Bio-Bubble? We'll try to explain this in the most appropriate way.

So, a Bio-Bubble is nothing but a safe environment that is being created for all the people involved in different types of sports. It might sound absurd as to how is this even possible, but it is. A Bio-Bubble permits only authorised sports persons, and support staff and other medical officials or match-day officials to enter that bubble which is nothing but a protected or an isolated area after they have been tested negative(-ve) for COVID-19. This is a rigorous task and involves many RT-PCR Covid tests to be conducted upon all the staff members and players within a week. Not only the players but where they stay is also very important and always carries a risk with itself. So, to minimise the risk of infection, the hotel staff where these players and officials stay have also been tested and they're being divided in these buffer zones, where no-one could enter this bio-bubble except them.

There are certain sports where this technique has been applied and already in use, for example the Football leagues around Europe, IPL cricket league happening in UAE to name a few. They have efficiently managed to create a safe sporting environment and the ones who are tested positive(+ve) have been sent to hospitals or isolation centres and they require at least 2 COVID-19 negative(-ve) reports to be able to enter the Bio-Bubble again.

Although, we do appreciate the efforts which is being made regarding restarting of sports but there is a certain lack of drama which is only possible with the fans and spectators in the stadium. No, AI or technology could take its place. Even, the players needs fan interaction in order to keep him/her motivated. The real feel of watching any sports is by going to a stadium and enjoy it live. While we wish this pandemic to end soon and we can again head out to the stadiums to cheer for our favourite team again.

Source image- reddit.com