Government of Canada announces financial support for AthletesCAN to support national team athletes Français
Investments will help the organization create an online AthleteHUB, a central location for national team athletes to access resources from multiple parties
GATINEAU, QC, Feb. 14, 2023 /CNW/ - Support and safety for our national team athletes is an important investment. It is part of the government's ongoing work with sport organizations to ensure a safe sport environment for athletes across Canada.
Last Friday, the Honourable Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Sport and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, announced an investment of $225,000 over two years for AthletesCAN.
The support will provide the organization with the financial means to support national athletes via an online platform called AthleteHUB. The platform will serve as a centralized one-stop shop for national team athletes, directing them to a wealth of information and resources that are currently available across the Canadian sport system, as well as resources developed by AthletesCAN.
The new online space will consolidate general athlete onboarding and support, safe sport and educational resources, eLearning modules, and information on funding. It will also include information about the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Committees and Commonwealth Sport Canada's respective Athletes' Commissions or Councils and Game Plan – Canada's Total Athlete Wellness Program. An athlete data collection tool will also be available, among other resources.
The AthleteHUB will initially be integrated into the AthletesCAN.ca website, with future development into a dedicated application.
As the largest investor in Canada's sport system, the Government of Canada is proud of its investments in support of Canadian athletes, the national and multisport organizations that support them, and initiatives to host international sport events.
Quotes
"Athlete representation is essential in the Canadian sport system. It ensures that the measures put in place represent the real needs of athletes. Our government is proud to support AthletesCAN so that they can provide the right tools for national athletes to create powerful and impactful change in the sport system. With their new project, AthleteHUB, they'll be able to centralize all of the information athletes need for support, resources, training and modules in one website. This initiative will foster a sense of community and will remove obstacles to athletes' access to information."
—The Honourable Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Sport and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec
"We sincerely appreciate the federal government's investment, which will allow us to create this important athlete-centric platform. There is an ever-increasing demand to support and educate high-performance athletes in navigating the complexity of the Canadian sport system and how to utilize its resources efficiently. The AthleteHUB will close this gap and provide direct access to athletes to the information they will need on their journey towards a successful and empowering sport experience."
—Erin Willson, President, AthletesCAN
AthletesCAN, the association of Canada's national team athletes, is the only fully independent and most inclusive athlete organization in the country. It is the first organization of its kind in the world. As the collective voice of Canadian national team athletes, AthletesCAN ensures an athlete-centered sport system by developing athlete leaders who influence sport policy and, as role models, inspire a strong sport culture.
Funding for AthletesCAN online platform AthleteHUB comes from Sport Canada's Sport Support Program.
To be eligible for funding, all sport organizations must have a policy on harassment, abuse, and discrimination and offer mandatory training on those issues. They must also provide access to an independent third-party to receive and manage complaints.
AthletesCAN is a signatory of the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner as its independent third-party mechanism to receive and manage harassment, abuse, and discrimination complaints.
The Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner is responsible for administering the Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport using trauma-informed processes that are compassionate, efficient, fair, respectful, and equitable to all parties involved.
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SOURCE Canadian Heritage
(media only), please contact: Ariane Joazard-Bélizaire, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Sport and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, [email protected]; Media Relations, Canadian Heritage, 1-819-994-9101, 1-866-569-6155, [email protected]
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