PROGRESS REPORT Game ON The Ontario Government’s Sport Plan Table of Contents Minister’s Message 1 Introduction 3 Advancing Opportunities for Women and Girls 4 Provincial Sport Organizations (PSOs) and Multi-sport Organizations (MSOs) Leadership 5 Coaches 5 Student-Athlete Sport Organizations 5 Game ON Commitments 6 Priority One: Participation 7 Support for Indigenous People in Sport 7 Rowan’s Law 8 Amateur Combative Sport 8 Ontario–Parasport Strong 9 Sport Recognition Policy 9 Priority Two: Development 10 Ontario Amateur Sport Fund (OASF) 10 Games Ontario Program 10 Officials Support 11 Priority Three: Excellence 12 Quest for Gold Modernization 12 Ontario Sport Hosting Program 12 Ministry of Tourism,Invictus Games Toronto 2017 Culture 13 and Sport 2017 Canada Summer Games 14 2021 Canada Summer Games 14 Sport Awards 14 Conclusion and Moving Forward 15 MINISTRY OF TOURISM, CULTURE AND SPORT Minister’s Message As Ontario’s Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, I am thrilled that my ministry has taken a leading role in developing a dynamic, safe and inclusive sport system in which people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities can participate Engaging in sport and recreation keeps us healthy, and teaches us important lessons about team work, tolerance, and respect, and highlights the importance of hard work and commitment Through the three pillars of participation, development and excellence, I want to ensure that each and every Ontarian has the opportunity to compete, increase their level of fitness, or simply make new friends through participation in sport Since the launch of the plan in 2015, our government has made significant progress in all three priority areas of Game ON and has initiated or completed all initiatives identified in the plan This progress was made possible thanks to our strong partnerships with Provincial and Multi-Sport Organizations, coaches, volunteers, officials and athletes, and my Advisory Panel on Sport A successful amateur sport system couldn’t function without them, and I look forward to working together as we continue to move forward Promoting and investing in sport and active living helps to build strong bodies and strong minds, and inspires our next generation of athletes I am proud to be leading Ontario on its path toward a best-in-class sport system that will be sustainable for generations to come With kind regards, Daiene Vernile Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport Progress Report 1 • Photos MINISTRY OF TOURISM, CULTURE AND SPORT Introduction Game ON – The Ontario Government’s Sport Plan, launched as a legacy of the 2015 Pan/Parapan American Games, is the province’s plan for supporting amateur sport in Ontario Through collaboration with stakeholders, the Plan continues to better align the sport sector to deliver actions under the three priorities of participation, development and excellence This progress report provides an update on what has been accomplished since we issued the Year One Progress Report in December 2016 As of March 2018, actions have now been completed or are underway in every one of the 17 initiatives outlined in the Plan The Minister’s Advisory Panel on Sport has played an important role in the implementation of these initiatives The Minister appointed the Panel in December 2015 to facilitate stakeholder engagement, identify issues in the sector, and provide expert advice to advance the Plan This year, they focused their efforts on providing the ministry with advice on how to improve opportunities and support for officials, celebrate excellence in Ontario’s amateur sport system, and support parasport participation As committed to in the Plan, the ministry has held an annual Sport Symposium since 2016 that brings together Ontario’s leaders in the field of sport to report back on the results of implementation and discuss current issues and trends The 2017 Symposium was attended by more than 110 unique organizations and 84 percent of respondents to a post event survey indicated their attendance experience as highly satisfactory “(Game ON) is intended to be a living document, adapting over time to specific events and changing circumstances. What will remain consistent is our three priorities—Participation, Development, Excellence—and our commitment and leadership to putting Ontario athletes first.” GAME ON – THE ONTARIO GOVERNMENT’S SPORTS PLAN (2015) Progress Report 3 MINISTRY OF TOURISM, CULTURE AND SPORT Advancing Opportunities for Women and Girls Improving women and girls’ participation in sport has benefits beyond the sport and recreation sector It can lead to higher self-confidence, better grades, and enhanced career opportunities Since the launch of Game ON, Ontario has made a commitment to work with sport sector delivery partners at all levels to close the gender gap and remove obstacles to lifelong participation in sport for women and girls In its first year, the Minister’s Advisory Panel on Sport was tasked with investigating opportunities to advance women and girls in sport in each of the three priority areas of the Plan Advancing opportunities for women and girls in sport continues to be a distinct commitment that we support, track, and measure above and beyond Game ON commitments On International Women’s Day in 2017, Premier Kathleen Wynne and former Tourism, Culture and Sport Minister Eleanor McMahon called on all sport organizations across the province to match the province’s commitment to promote equal and fair opportunities for women and girls in sport and recreation The government committed to developing an Action Plan for Women and Girls in Sport which was released in July 2017 at the Sport Ministers Federal-Provincial/Territorial (FPT) meeting in Winnipeg, ONTARIO’S Action Plan Manitoba The Action Plan outlines a comprehensive series of 21 ADVANCING OPPORTUNITIES FOR Women and Girls in Sport actions intended to increase the number of women and girls who ontario.ca are athletes, coaches, sport administrators, and leaders at schools, universities and communities across the province “It’s time to create optimal conditions and systems to support women and girls of different ages, abilities and backgrounds to be engaged in sport and recreation.” ADVANCING OPPORTUNITIES FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS IN SPORT: ONTARIO’S ACTION PLAN (2017) 4 Game ON – The Ontario Government’s Sport Plan MINISTRY OF TOURISM, CULTURE AND SPORT PROVINCIAL SPORT ORGANIZATIONS (PSOs) AND MULTI-SPORT ORGANIZATIONS (MSOs) LEADERSHIP All 60 PSOs/MSOs that are recognized to deliver sport programming in Ontario are required to have policies in place to ensure equal access and fair opportunities for women and girls In addition, approximately 78 percent of PSO/MSOs are now delivering programs/initiatives for under-represented populations in Ontario, including women and girls COACHES Changing the Game – Changing the Conversation (CTG-CTC) was a pilot initiative dedicated to increasing the number of qualified female coaches in Ontario across all sports The program includes the development of a mentorship model for female coaches and a resource hub for apprentice coaches to build and enhance their toolkits It provides a broad pool of qualified female coaches from which colleges, universities, and PSO/MSOs can hire, develop, and promote The Coaches Association of Ontario (CAO) successfully recruited over 250 women into the program This program will continue to provide mentorship programs for female coaches to increase gender equity, challenge bias, and eliminate barriers women face at work, at home, and in their communities with committed funding through the Ontario’s government’s Women’s Economic Empowerment Strategy STUDENT-ATHLETE SPORT ORGANIZATIONS The Ontario Federation of School Athletics Association (OFSAA), the Ontario University Athletics (OUA), and the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) deliver sport programs to over 35,000 athletes across Ontario and have come together to identify common goals and priorities including women and girls These associations are taking steps to ensure that there is equal representation on boards and sport advisory committees and have established female mentorship programs for athletes and coaches They are committed to increasing opportunities for women and girls to participate in all aspects of sport Progress Report 5 MINISTRY OF TOURISM, CULTURE AND SPORT Game ON COMMITMENTS The ministry continued to advance the delivery of Game ON commitments and all initiatives announced in Game ON are complete or are underway 6 Game ON – The Ontario Government’s Sport Plan MINISTRY OF TOURISM, CULTURE AND SPORT Priority One: Participation Focuses on providing opportunities for all Ontarians to get involved in organized sport in a safe and positive environment The ministry, in consultation with the sector, has taken action in a number of areas to achieve this priority SUPPORT FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE IN SPORT In July 2017, Ontario hosted the 2017 North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) The Games hosted competitions in 14 sport disciplines, welcomed 5,000 participants, and was supported by 2,000 volunteers Team Ontario finished third with 137 medals, including 51 gold, 42 silver, and 44 bronze This was the first time that the Games were held in Ontario and generated an economic impact of $21 9 million within the province In preparing for the Games, the Aboriginal Sport and Wellness Council of Ontario (ASWCO) held over 60 separate tryouts for Aboriginal Team Ontario Attended by over 1,400 athletes, the Council selected a team of 550 participants to compete at the Toronto