No shaking hands, no kissing, no touching faces - there are plenty of suggested restrictions in place to reduce the spread of coronavirus, but what about our sporting codes?
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The answer is that short of players self-quarantining themselves if they had visited countries where travel bans applied, or if they had been in contact with a known carrier of the virus, our local sporting bodies have had no word on how to deal with the virus which has now infected 90,000 people and killed 3000 world wide.
Calls to the Newcastle Rugby League and Maitland footy clubs the Pickers, Blacks and Magpies revealed there had been no direction from their senior bodies on courses of action following the first cases of person-to-person transmission of coronavirus within Australia and the country's second death from the disease.
"We haven't been told anything apart from the original posts about self-quarantining by people who had travelled to countries such as China," Blacks president Pat Howard said.
"We will act on the advice from Australian Rugby and other senior governing bodies. But given the contact nature of our sport, a ban on handshaking is probably the least of our worries.
"We trust that we will be kept up to date with the latest medical advice and act in the best interest of all our players and members.
"We already very much exercise quarantining of our players from the main squad when they have influenza and the like, so I can assure everyone we do take these things seriously."
Pickers president Frank Lawler and the Newcastle Rugby League said there had been no official directions for the NSW RL at this stage.
Maitland Magpies football manager Mick Mirisch said there had been no official notification on a coronavirus policy at this stage, but it was an issue the club and the competition needed to be aware of particularly with travel overseas by players and officials and if there is an upsurge of cases in Australia.
"I am officially taking a break from signing autographs until further notice."
- Portland guard CJ McCollum
"I'm travelling to Bali in April and I know others officials and players have overseas travel plans throughout the year so it's something we need to be aware of.
"If cases escalate in Australia it's certainly something that will come more and more to the forefront.
NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard this week suggested Australians stop handshaking as a form of greeting to help reduced the spread of caronavirus.
"It is a very Australian thing to do to put your hand out and shake hands for example. I would be suggesting it is time that Aussies actually gave each other a pat on the back for the time being. No hand shaking, it's not necessary," Hazzard said.
He also said that while he wouldn't tell people to stop kissing, they should "exercise some degree of caution" when doing so.
Australia's chief medical officer Professor Brendan Murphy distanced himself from the no handshake advice.
"If you have come back from South Korea or Italy or Iran, then we would certainly want you to practise some social distancing, not go to mass gatherings, and in that context, shaking hands," Murphy said at a press conference on Tuesday.
"We are not suggesting those practices should be considered by the broader general community."
Across the globe games and events have been cancelled because of involvement of players from countries such as China, football games in northern Italy have been played at empty stadium to reduced the spread among fans and the clock is ticking on whether the Olympic Games will go ahead or possibly be postponed.
There had been initial light-hearted discussion about goal celebrations in soccer and basketball such as high fives and hand shakes to be replaced with elbow and fist taps and even tapping each other's feet.
But it has taken on a more concerned tone in recent days. The BBC reported the Premier League has written to clubs to emphasise the importance of hygiene during the current coronavirus outbreak.
It also reported a number of clubs, including Wolves and West Ham, have advised players not to pose for selfies and sign autographs until the situation changes.
In the US, college basketball games have been cancelled and The Guardian reported the NBA has told players to avoid high-fiving fans and strangers and avoid taking any item for autographs.
The NBA has been one of the most proactive competitions in monitoring and addressing the coronavirus crisis.
The NBA suggestions include: avoiding contact with people who are sick, staying home when feeling ill, cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched objects and surfaces. It also suggested players make sure they "are up to date with all routine vaccinations, including the flu vaccine".
The Guardian reported Portland guard CJ McCollum said in a tweet on Saturday that he is taking the matter seriously.
"Make sure y'all washing y'all hands with soap for 20 or more seconds & covering ya mouths when you cough," McCollum tweeted. "I am officially taking a break from signing autographs until further notice."
