(Montreal) The Canadian Olympic Committee has invested $10 million in safe sport initiatives, citing a call to action from Canada’s Sport Minister Pascale St-Onge.
Posted yesterday at 10:17 p.m.
David Shoemaker, president and CEO and secretary general of the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC), made the announcement at the organization’s annual meeting on Saturday.
“Athletes and sports leaders believe the current state of our system is unsustainable,” Shoemaker said in a statement. We all want a safe and accessible system that also produces results on the world stage. To achieve this, we must work together to find and implement solutions. »
Minister St-Onge said there is a safe sport crisis in Canada and that over the past few months gymnastics, boxing, bobsleigh and skeleton have written to Sport Canada asking for independent investigations into their sport.
“We need to engage the entire sport community in our efforts to create a safer Canadian sport environment,” said St-Onge. This is a collective problem that requires a collective solution. We must continue to work together and build on what has already been done collectively to ensure that our athletes are able to thrive in a sporting environment free from abuse, harassment, discrimination and mistreatment. »
The COC said it will continue to work with athlete representatives, national sport organization leaders, Sport Canada, the Coaching Association of Canada, the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner and others to identify areas of investment which may include prevention, education and governance.
“This is an important announcement from the COC and an encouraging step in the right direction for the entire Canadian sport system,” said Rosie MacLennan, two-time Olympic trampoline champion and chair of the COC’s Athletes’ Commission. . For athletes to perform at their best, we need a system that is safe, fair and that puts the mental and physical health of athletes at the centre. »
The annual three-day session brought together the COC’s management, board and national sport organization leaders and featured a series of conversations about safe sport, according to the organization.