High-risk high school sports are set to begin in Bellmore-Merrick

Tryouts for basketball, wrestling, kickline and cheering are set to begin in the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District on Monday, Feb. 1.

The announcement was made in a letter sent to parents by Director of Athletics Eric Caballero on Friday, two days after local health officials approved the guidance put in place by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. 

According to the letter, weekly Covid-19 testing will be available to student-athletes through a partnership with a third-party healthcare provider. The testing, which will be carried out by trained and certified medical practitioners, will be open at the Brookside School starting on Saturday, Feb. 6, and will be offered every Wednesday from 5-7 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. 

"The Bellmore-Merrick CHSD feels that testing is a critical step in ensuring the resumptin of high risk sports as safely as possible," Caballero wrote. Paperwork, including appointments, will be handled electronically, he added. Futher details regardinging testing acommodations, requirments and schedules will be available on Monday. 

On Monday, student-athletes will meet with their coaches. Rank One Sports clearance will not be required prior to tryouts.  However, student-athletes who make a team will need to complete a new “Sports Candidate Health History”  form, as required by New York State, by Friday, February 5^th.  All winter student-athletes will receive notification and reminders about completing the required “Sports Candidate Health History” form from their coach during the first week of participation.

Lockers will also be unavailable, so designated drop-off areas for athletic equipment bags will be established at each high school. "Student-athletes will be able to drop off their equipment in the morning upon arrival at school and pick it up before practice," Caballero wrote. "However, there will be LIMITED locker room use (for changing purposes ONLY) for those sports who are scheduled for the earliest time slot, which immediately follows the end of the school day (2:30-4pm).  All student-athletes scheduled for the later time slots are asked to report to their practices/competitions dressed in the appropriate athletic gear and prepared to participate without the need for locker room usage."

"Please know that our primary focus will be to maintain the health and safety of our student-athletes and coaches," Caballero continued. "All tryouts will be conducted in accordance with guidelines and recommendations made by the NYSDOH and the Nassau County Health Department.  Attendance will be taken daily for contact tracing purposes and all student-athletes will be required to show their self-assessment, NERIC app clearance screen on their smartphone device prior to entering all facilities.  In addition, temperatures will be checked prior to participation and all guidelines regarding PPE, social distancing and hand sanitizing will be strictly adhered to as we work together to safely resume 'High Risk' sports in BMCHSD."

To view the full letter, visit the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District's website at www.bellmore-merrick.k12.ny.us/.

This story will be updated.