Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to meeting number 48 of the House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women.
Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2) and the motion adopted on October 31, 2022, the committee will resume its study of women and girls in sport.
Today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format, pursuant to the House order of June 23, 2022. Members are attending in person in the room and remotely using the Zoom application.
I would like to make a few comments for the benefit of the witnesses and members.
Please wait until I recognize you by name before speaking. For those participating by video conference, click on the microphone icon to activate your mike and please mute yourself when you are not speaking.
There is interpretation for those on Zoom. You have the choice, at the bottom of your screen, of either the floor, English or French. For those in the room, you can use the earpiece and select the desired channel.
As a reminder, I point out that all comments should be addressed through the chair.
For members in the room, if you wish to speak, please raise your hand. For members on Zoom, please use the “raise hand” function. The clerk and I will manage the speaking order as best we can. We appreciate your patience and understanding in this regard.
In accordance with our routine motion, I'm informing the committee that all witnesses have completed the required connection tests in advance of the meeting.
I'm going to remind everyone with the following trigger warning that this is a very difficult study. Before we welcome the witnesses, I would like to advise everybody that we'll be discussing experiences related to abuse. This may be triggering to viewers, members or staff with similar experiences. If you feel distressed or you need help, please advise the clerk. Also, you have the team here: We always try to make sure that everybody is in good shape. If there are any issues, let us know.
I would now like to welcome our witnesses. As individuals, we have Lanni Marchant, Olympian, athlete advocate; and Andrea Neil, former women's national soccer team player and assistant coach. From the World Association of Icehockey Players Unions, we have Sandra Slater, president, North America division; and Randall Gumbley, consultant.
We'll be providing each of you with five minutes for your opening comments. I try to be flexible on this. When you see me start rolling my arms, try to bring it down to within 15 seconds.
I'm now going to pass the floor over to Lanni.
Lanni, you have your five minutes.