Your club and/or facility has been given the “OK” and you’ve decided to re-open your doors, with some restrictions and guidelines from the state and local government, as well as CDC protocols. Through preparation and assessment of various factors addressed in the previous Business Solutions Re-opening article, you have a plan in place to begin training your athletes in a safe and responsible way.

The next step is to insure that you maintain safe operations to protect the health of your athletes and staff once you are open. It is critical that you continue to operate safely to protect your people and the community at large, and that you are prepared to act appropriately should COVID-19 become present in your club environment.

Here is a checklist for Club Directors to use to best maintain safe operations during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Participant Monitoring & Engagement

Club leadership should be sensitive to that fact that the return to sport will not look like what your athletes are accustomed to. Your guidance and reinforcement will be an important part of maintaining safety going forward.

  • Consider no spectators or non-essential personnel (or strict social distancing; ie remove bleachers), including parents. Athletes and coaching staff only.
  • Healthy staff and athletes
    • Screening procedures and questions (may get guidance from state/local authorities). Staffing for this. Consider screening coaches and athletes before entering facility (temperature check, questions).
      • Do you need to monitor temperature at door?
      • Do you have infrared non-contact thermometer? (they are back ordered until June in most cases)
      • Have you been sick or run a fever in the last 72 hours?
    • Are you requiring that they be practicing social distancing outside of practice?
    • Are you requiring that they are not currently in a contract tracing identified category or period?


In this clip from a recent JVA webinar, Steve Sack (MI Elite) shares what club directors need to think about to make sure the facility and equipment are ready to go.

Facility and Equipment Cleaning Protocols
  • Balls and Ball carts – cleaned before and after each group
  • Courts/floors
  • Other equipment
  • General surfaces – benches, bleachers, doors, restrooms, floors, etc.
  • Contact your HVAC company to determine if settings can be altered to increase the exchange rate in your facility
  • Consistency of cleaning – Cleaning log
Athlete & Coach Safety Measures
  • Preparedness – water bottles filled, arrive dressed ready to go, shoes on, change of clothes and go right to their assigned court. No use of water fountains, eliminate gatherings during water breaks.
  • Hand washing/sanitizing – before entering court, after leaving court. During training as appropriate.
  •  Cleanliness
    • Equipment disinfection procedures/frequency (wipes, lysol, etc.)
    • Court/Facility disinfection frequency
    • Staff hand-washing between groups/sessions
    • Schedule/documentation for contact tracing purposes
  • PPE – gloves, masks. Coaches can wear gloves.
  • Buffer times between groups, Staggered entry
  • Density requirements general, small group vs. square footage constraints
  • Social distancing requirements
  • Athletes bring a change of shirt and spandex cover up for ride home. Athletes change shirt at the end of practice.
Training Elements/Structure
  • Maintaining Safety protocols and any applicable social distancing guidelines.
  • Group consistency and control – for contact tracing purposes – documentation of attendants
  • Prepare training at varied exposure risk levels
    • One-on-one training may be the initial step progressing phases to group/team training
    • Skill-based vs. team-based initially may be best as athlete and/or staff readiness will vary.


Sherry Fadool (Triangle VBC) discusses possible staffing changes due to COVID-19. She also talks about possible response plans to prepare, such as contact tracing and participant documentation.

Staffing Considerations
  • How will you select the staff to be involved?
  • Will this be free of charge? How will you compensate staff?
  • Be prepared for staffing changes.
  • Staff arrive early for testing
Participant Documentation/Contact Tracing
Have a response plan
  • Should you have a potential (symptomatic staff or athlete) or identified case
  • Maintain privacy of any individual who may test positive or show symptoms

View the recent webinar: Junior Volleyball Club Readiness in the COVID-19 era – Getting back to the gym safely and responsibly – HERE. This webinar addresses the various protocols and measures your club should consider as you prepare to re-open your doors. Among the factors addressed is: risk assessment, preparing office and coaching staff, getting your facility ready to meet local/state guidelines, cleanliness protocols, and safety measures to insure you are protecting the welfare of your athletes, coaches and families.

JVA Business Solutions articles address important decisions that club directors are currently faced with, and JVA will work to provide information regarding those decisions that pertain to clubs across the wide spectrum of organizational and operational structures that clubs operate within. Stay tuned for the next article in the series that will focus on program and competition considerations and modifications.

For related reading and resources visit the COVID-19 Club Resources page.