As sports resume after a year-long hiatus, many new restrictions will apply, and for some sports, this will include weekly COVID-19 tests.

According to athletic director Shaun Strople, indoor sport athletes and coaches must test weekly in order to practice, while high contact outdoor sport athletes, such as those who play football, soccer and water polo, will only be tested prior to competitions.

While testing days differ for each program, indoor sport athletes “are encouraged to test on Wednesday and Saturday,” Strople said.

Weekly COVID testing will be hard for some students, there is no denying it as both students and coaches must take the test on their own time and dime. While some sites do offer free testing, such as the Ventura County Fairgrounds, others do not. Included in the indoor sports category that are being tested weekly is wrestling. 

Assistant coach Kane Hobbs said, “I am just happy you kids will have an opportunity to wrestle. If it’s what they are requiring for us to return to practice and competition then so be it.”

“with proper planning and communication, we can avoid any potential scheduling conflicts.” -Kane Hobbs

After being tested, athletes and their parents are responsible for submitting their results to: [email protected], 24 hours prior to each competition and “the test is sufficient for 7 days after the test date” Strople said. 

While the teams may practice altogether, without socially distancing, masks must be worn at all times with the exception of competitions. Even then, masks should be worn during competitions as tolerated.

Coaches are aware that this requirement of weekly testing may interfere with practice time and even scheduling competitions, but Hobbs strongly believes that with “proper planning and communication, we can avoid any potential scheduling conflicts.”