Safe Sport is Positive Sport – The Ottawa Sport Council is proud to share their involvement in a 2 day National collaboration held in Quebec City June 2nd and 3rd with Project Team Up for Safe Sport. This collaboration consists of each Province’s/region sport agencies championing safe sport principales and positive sport culture. This coming together was a long term partnership with the Canadian Olympic Committee, viaSport and Sport’Aide over the past year. The development and mission of this collaborative working group is to cohesively protect and create consistency on safe sport initiatives and needs across Canada. As a National mobilization, Project Team Up for Safe Sport aims to ensure the integration of safe sport principles to positively influence and protect sport culture across all levels of sport.
The two-day discussions were incredibly valuable. Provinces shared their Safe Sport strengths, initiatives, and developments, creating an incredible opportunity to witness our collective power for positive change in sport. These new nationwide relationships will be instrumental in driving change, empowering us to ensure Safe Sport is recognized and understood across Canada by everyone involved: children, youth, parents, leaders, administrators, coaches, officials, volunteers, and athletes alike. By uniting our voices on what Safe Sport means in Canada, we can restore a positive sport culture, foster safe participation, clarify best practices, and cultivate a new generation of leaders who truly understand that safe sport is positive sport.
The Ottawa Sport Council (OSC) held a unique position within this collaborative team. Recognized for its development of The Belonging Playbook and as a collective voice for community sport, the OSC effectively championed safe sport from a grassroots perspective. Our belief in fostering only positive sport experiences strongly aligns with the national movement to ensure safe and positive sporting environments for everyone. We were proud to participate, especially given our commitment to community sport both locally and provincially. It was a clear concern, however, that while provincial sport organizations were present, the province of Ontario’s official sport agency or advocate seat remained vacant. The OSC was grateful to represent the importance and power of positive sport experiences across Ontario.
The Ottawa Sport Council will continue its involvement with Project Team Up for Safe Sport and with the aim of the Ottawa Sport Council Safe Sport Toolkit to be updated by the end of 2026 with the new valuable lessons and information gained during this collaboration. If you have more questions about Safe Sport in your organization or want to learn more about this collaboration please contact Frances Mercer, [email protected]
Below are some incredible safe sport initiatives from the Provincial Sport Agencies collaborating on this partnership: