Gov. David Ige has announced that surfing tournaments and other ocean sports competitions will finally be allowed to resume beginning in June; ocean sports had been suspended as a precaution during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The May 25 announcement was made after community advocates questioned why youth sports were allowed to resume but other outdoor competitions like ocean sports were not, according to reporting by Hawaii News Now.
"Surfing and outrigger canoe paddling are so much more than sports. They are a part of our culture and a way of life. I look forward to seeing our kids out in the water competing in surf contests and regattas again," U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) wrote in a May 26 Facebook post.
U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz
| Wikimedia Commons
Hawaii had previously suspended all ocean sports competitions in January because of COVID-19 safety and health concerns, due to the possibility of large public gatherings, Hawaii News Now reported.
Schatz had sent a letter to the governor in early May questioning why school and youth sports were allowed to resume but ocean sports competitions were not on the list for reopening. By request, ocean sports competitions were added to the list of allowed activities.
Outdoor sporting competitions like surfing, canoe paddling and swimming can begin Tuesday, June 1, and the state will begin issuing permits for ocean activities.