"Many players will not have had access to the necessary training methods to ensure that they have the necessary fitness and conditioning to compete," said the World Players' Association (WPA), whose members play in the NBA, MLB, NHL, NFL, European soccer and Australian Rules football, among others.
Other key concerns were whether players had been provided with enough time to return to competition fitness and whether, in the case of injury, they would have access to the usual range of treatment and rehabilitation, given the strain on health services.
The WPA said that one key measure would be to reduce the strain by modifying rest periods, substitutions and duration of matches, as soccer had done by allowing five substitutions per team instead of three.
BERN, June 4 (Reuters) - Players may be at an increased risk of injury as professional sports rush back into action following the coronavirus stoppage, a global union representing 85,000 athletes said on Thursday.
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