Residents of two wards in District 7, Ho Chi Minh City took part in physical activities at local parks for the first time in months on Tuesday afternoon as local authorities began piloting another step to lift COVID-19 restrictions.

The People’s Committee of District 7 held a ceremony to launch a trial of the resumption of physical training and sports facilities on Tuesday afternoon, following the announcement of the scheme a day earlier.

The new regulation took effect immediately for people living in the district’s Tan Phong and Tan Phu Wards, home to a large expat community, before being applied to all wards.

Residents of those two wards are allowed to walk and exercise in two parks -- Canh Doi on N-Nam Street and the S area of Nam Vien Park -- and five tennis courts for a ten-day period until September 30.

The time frame for outdoor exercises is regulated at 6:00 am - 8:00 am and 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm, while only those that have completed two doses of COVID-19 vaccine or recovered from the disease within the past six months are permitted to work out.

They must reside in a green zone as shown in the city’s COVID-19 map bando.tphcm.gov.vn and register with ward authorities for permission.

Everyone must wear face masks and keep a distance of two meters from one another while the number of people is limited at the scale of one person per ten square meters.

If the trial phase goes smoothly, from October 1 onward, outdoor exercise and sports activities would be expanded to all ten wards of District 7.

Indoor sports clubs, football fields, stadiums, and all parks equipped with workout equipment are expected to resume operation in this period.

In this phase, those having one COVID-19 shot would be allowed to exercise while wearing a mask would be mandatory.

The epicenter of Vietnam’s fourth COVID-19 wave that emerged in late April, with 348,220 community transmissions, Ho Chi Minh City has gone through various levels of social distancing since June.

Tuesday afternoon is the first time people in District 7 have stepped out of their homes for outdoor exercises since July 9 as the city’s dwellers have been requested not to make unnecessary travels.

The district's authorities have gradually loosened COVID-19 restrictions after declaring its control over the coronavirus pandemic.

“I feel excited to go for a walk in the park as I’ve never stayed home for so long,” said Nguyen Thi Thanh, a resident of Tan Phong Ward.

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