The Oregon Health Authority revised its current COVID-19 guidance Monday on the use of masks outdoors during sports competitions after a masked student collapsed at the finish line of a race.
“The guidance will allow people to take off face coverings when competing in non-contact sports outdoors and maintaining at least 6 feet of distance from others and the other virus protective protocols,” OHA wrote in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
TRACK COACH BLASTS LAWMAKERS AFTER ATHLETE FORCED TO WEAR MASK COLLAPSES AT FINISH LINE
OHA clarified that the exemption does not apply during training and conditioning for sports competitions, and competitors must don a mask before and after they finish competing.
The revised guidance comes after a track and field coach at Summit High School voiced frustration over the state’s mask mandate when one of his students, Maggie Williams, lost consciousness and fell across the finish line while running an 800-meter race on April 21.
“I am concerned with the mask rule,” Dave Turnbull, the coach, said. “This is what I am worried about, and I said this at the beginning of the season. You get a kid running the 800 with a mask on, it is actually dangerous. They don’t get the oxygen that they need. This rule needs to change.”
Previous guidance required competing athletes to wear a mask during competitions.
OHA emphasized wearing masks is essential to reducing the spread of COVID-19, as “Oregon at present is facing a fourth wave of surging COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations and wider community spread of the virus.
On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced vaccinated adults do not need to wear masks while walking, exercising, dining, or attending small gatherings outside.
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Oregon has vaccinated 1,135,357 people, or 27% of the population, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
