Thank you, Madam Chair and the heritage standing committee on safe sport, for inviting me to speak today on behalf of the Sport Information Resource Centre, also referred to as SIRC.
To the survivors in sport who have come forward and shared their experiences and for those who have not, my heart goes out to each and every one of you, as no one should have to go through the abuses and harms you have suffered. As a parent, as a volunteer and today as someone working in sport, I firmly believe that we need to do whatever we can to ensure that no one—especially children—is maltreated or harmed in any way.
My reason for coming here today is that I believe we can make a difference. Why? Because I'm watching behaviours change. SIRC is Canada's leader and most-trusted partner in advancing sport through knowledge and evidence. Our role is to help answer questions, facilitate conversations and share knowledge with the sport sector. We're not an advocacy group. We are a resource centre known for our neutrality and for our desire to help find credible information and to listen and learn.
For example, 10 years ago, concussions were not well known in the public conversation. Athletes, coaches, officials, parents and sport media all seemed to embrace the “tough it out and shake it off” mentality. In 2016, the government, led by Governor General David Johnston, decided that “We Can Do Better”. The FPT ministers made it a priority to increase concussion awareness, learn how to manage and prevent concussions in sport, and collect the data to continue learning. Today, all national sport organizations have mandatory concussion policies. The provinces have implemented concussion protocols. Ontario has Rowan's Law Day, and the FPT ministers endorsed the fourth week of September to be Concussion Awareness Week every year.
Maltreatment in sport is a serious problem, as evidenced by the revelations of horrendous harms experienced by athletes. We recognize that safe sport is a priority for Canadians, as it was highlighted in 14 of the 24 Canadian sport policy consultations last year. However, we are also witnessing behaviour change as it relates to safe sport. From the Red Deer declaration endorsed by the FPT ministers in 2019 to the creation and mandatory adoption of the UCCMS and OSIC by national sport organizations, change is happening.
In an effort to be proactive, NSOs, PSOs and universities are now creating dedicated staffing positions to help focus on safe sport. SIRC hosts Canada's national sport job board, and this past year we've noticed an emergence of postings for sport safety coordinators, sport safety officers, safe sport managers and directors of safe sport, as well as managers of HR and equity, diversity and inclusion, and recently one for an EDI and anti-racism coordinator.
We have observed an increase in education and awareness surrounding safe sport: the CAC and Respect in Sport online modules, the sport research conference with an inclusion and diversity panel, the Ontario Soccer Summit with a safe sport panel, SIRCuit articles highlighting recent research. Sports are collaborating and offering training in ways that are relevant to their members, their staff and their boards.
We also are seeing an increase in safe sport and safeguarding-related research. The findings of our recent literature review of over 30 studies echoes what we heard from the more than 5,000 Canadians who participated in the Canadian sport policy renewal process in 2022. Programming needs to be more than developmentally and technically sound. It needs to promote equity, diversity and inclusion. Calls for mandatory safe sport, anti-racism and cultural awareness training for everyone in sport—participants, parents, coaches, officials, administrators and leaders—were loud and clear.
While safe sport environments are necessary for everyone in sport, athletes and officials were identified as the people most often experiencing abuse and harassment. In particular, the issue of abuse of officials is under-recognized and contributes to a larger problem of official availability, and we can't run sports without officials. As mentioned in a campaign currently run by several PSOs in Manitoba and Ontario, “No Ref, No Game”.
The Canadian sport policy consultations indicated a clear desire to see Canada as an international leader in safe sport, so what can government do? We need to start by listening to Canadians, especially our survivors. We need to collaborate and make safe sport a government priority, and we need to fund and encourage sustainable programming that promotes safe sport at all levels of sport.
Thank you for listening. We want to help.