Among the documents I sent you I found the summary of Boxing Canada's changing selection criteria from 2011 to 2021. These were approved by the board of directors. Oversight by Sport Canada, when there is any, is substantial. Without any context and a lack of familiarity with the community, it's easy to approve a document without asking any questions.
Once again, when athletes follow the existing mechanisms, it can take several months. In the meantime, the athlete does not take part in any competitions or training camps, and cannot accumulate any points. Like it or not, whistle-blowing is something you have to think about carefully.
There is also the stigmatization that goes along with whistle-blowing and using the existing mechanisms. When a fellow team member and I made a complaint to the federation, it took barely 24 hours for the coaches and athletes to identify us as those who were accusing the high performance director. Needless to say, we felt excluded. The people in power quickly lined up some allies. I believe you now understand why.
After two weeks, my mental health had suffered a great deal: loss of appetite, trouble sleeping, self-mutilation and isolation. The doctor put me and my teammate on sick leave. We could have been sent to a safe place, such as another gym or another club, until the situation had been dealt with, but the president of the federation refused. To receive certification, and financial support from this committee, several federations require total centralization and the rules are strict and inflexible. If we were given permission to decentralize, it would have to be given to others as well. That's what we were told. In the interest of equity, we had to remain inactive until we were prepared to return to this toxic environment.
When we said we wanted to take part in the training camp, our applications were denied, because we had missed too many of the regular training sessions, even though the doctor was in agreement and an accommodation had been requested. This inevitably meant losing our points, which would of course have an impact on our certification and potential selection. I would remind you that all of that was happening at the same time as Sport Solutions was in contact with the federation and the high performance director. It's a lot for an athlete to handle, but that's how things currently work. It's also important to understand that the federation—in my case it was the high performance director—could simply take away my certification in the blink of an eye, as well as any funding, without anyone, even you, having anything to say about it. I could also have complained through various existing mechanisms. Once again, that might take months. So we go for months without any financial resources and that's why we eventually give up.
Under the current system, athletes are responsible for the oversight of their federation. This can cost us dearly, because all reports and actions taken, and any accusations and complaints made within the Canadian sport system can be taken over by each province's own justice system.