Swimming lessons at Swimfast Aquatic Group used to take 2½ to three hours but will now be halved when classes resume following the reopening of sports facilities tomorrow.
The decision follows stringent new physical distancing measures announced by Sport Singapore (SportSG) yesterday as it revealed its health and safety protocols to help sports resume safely amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The swimming academy's move is aimed at ensuring it adheres to a rule that caps the number of people in a venue to only 50. The operating capacity of these facilities is also restricted to 10 sq m per person.
So training sessions at Swimfast will take place only in the pool, with all dryland training taken out of the curriculum for now.
Founder and former national swimmer David Lim, whose business, like many others, had been shut since April 7 following the implementation of the circuit breaker, said: "It's not back to normal with our modified programme, but I'm glad that this has come in and it helps tide us through this period."
Other measures announced by SportSG include observing a distance of 2m between individuals who are engaged in exercise and sports, although those involved in high intensity or high movement exercises indoors must be 3m apart.
Group activities are limited to no more than five participants although an additional instructor or coach can join the group. If there is more than one group sharing a space, the groups should not interact with one another and must be 3m apart.
Contact tracing, using SafeEntry and the TraceTogether app, plus temperature screening will be mandatory.
Sharing of equipment such as weights and basketballs should be avoided, but if it is not possible, then equipment should be wiped down or sanitised frequently.
The guidelines apply to venues such as stadiums, swimming complexes, sports halls, hard courts, gyms, fitness studios, golf courses and bowling centres, including those in condominiums, golf and country clubs.
The advisory also included venue-specific precautionary measures that will be in place. These include the introduction of lane ropes in pools and specific swimming timings for seniors and the general public in ActiveSG pools.
Lap swimming for seniors is limited from 6.30am to 8.45am, while lap swimming for the general public is from 6.30pm to 9.30pm.
There will be extended operating hours at Our Tampines Hub, Sengkang, Yio Chu Kang, Jurong Lake and Kallang Basin swimming pools, from 6.30pm to 12.30am to cater to public lap swimmers. These facilities used to close at 9pm.
Several ActiveSG facilities will remain closed, with some still undergoing renovation works while others are still functioning as foreign worker dormitories for essential workers who do not have Covid-19. Among them are the Jalan Besar Stadium, Ministry of Education Evans Stadium and swimming complexes at Choa Chu Kang, Delta, Hougang, Jalan Besar, Jurong West and Bishan.
While various sports facilities are taking precautionary measures in preparation for their reopening, some sports enthusiasts are apprehensive about going back to the gym right away.
Student C. Sanchana, who used to frequent ActiveSG gyms twice-to thrice-weekly, will not be rushing to the gym. Although the 18-year-old is looking forward to being able to use the treadmill again after two months, she plans to continue with her home workouts for now.
The Yishun Junior College student said: "If I were to go to the gym now, it would be really crowded and I don't want to expose myself to such a large volume of people.
"There are still a handful of community cases being reported every day and I am still not very willing to go to these public spaces."
SportSG said the parameters will be reviewed from time to time, taking into account how well the safety measures are implemented by operators and the compliance of the users in these settings, and the broader Covid-19 situation at the time.
• Additional reporting by Arvinash Ravindran
