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Cape Town - As Cape Town comes to grips with the reality of taps running dry in April, sport in the region has come close to a complete standstill.
With the city encouraging residents to each use less than 50 litres of water per day - or less - in an attempt to avoid 'Day Zero', a number of decisions have been taken to help save water in the sporting community.
All club cricket in the Western Province Cricket Association - Premier League, 1st Division, 2nd Division, and 3rd Division - has been cancelled with immediate effect.
The decision follows the implementation of Level 6B water restrictions in the Western Cape, which prevent pitches and sports fields being watered with municipal drinking water.
This has also seen all school cricket cancelled for the foreseeable future.
"The decision from the WPCA Local Leagues Cricket committee and the WPCA board and in consultation with the City of Cape Town is to suspend all community based cricket (including schools and youth cricket clubs) with immediate effect due to unavailability of water including treated effluent, potable (municipal) and very recently borehole water," Western Province Cricket's Camillah Adams said in an email circulated to schools this week.
Wynberg's Winter Sports Festival, meanwhile, has also been cancelled. The festival usually takes place on Easter weekend and hosts schools from all around the country, but this year it will not take place.
"With the water crisis deepening, it would be irresponsible to host a mass-participation sporting event while our City is taking extraordinary water management measures to stave off Day Zero, now predicted for April 12," Wynberg headmaster Jan de Waal said.
Meanwhile, the Cape Town Cycle Tour will controversially go ahead on March 11, as well as the Two Oceans Marathon on March 31.
