Tag: athlete safety Canada

By a former competitive figure skater, coach, whistleblower, and parent, in collaboration with ChatGPT

Introduction: Listening and Nodding in Pain

When the Government of Canada released its Future of Sport in Canada preliminary report on August 28, 2025, I sat listening to Commissioner Lise Maisonneuve read the findings. And as damning as they were, all I could do was nod in painful agreement.

I wish I could say I was surprised. But after a lifetime in sport — first as a young athlete who, by the age of 11, was already living away from home and experiencing verbal and mental abuse, and later as a coach for nearly three decades — every word rang true. Abuse of power, harassment, humiliation, sexual abuse, and systemic neglect. I’ve seen it all.

For me, the decision to retire from coaching wasn’t just about being there for my child (though that mattered deeply). The bigger reason was survival. By the time I walked away, I had PTSD from the daily hostility. I couldn’t sleep, my body broke down, I had panic attacks, depression, and even a nervous tic. Sport — the thing that was supposed to build resilience and joy — was destroying me.

And I was an adult with resources, friends, and a family support system. If I barely made it through intact, what hope does a child have when they’re abused by a coach, a teammate, or a parent chasing Olympic dreams?

Sport in Crisis: A Broken System

The Commission doesn’t mince words: Canadian sport has “lost its way”.

The problems are structural and cultural:

• Leadership void: There is no single body responsible for the sport’s overall direction. Policies are often reactive, cobbled together after each crisis, rather than being guided by a clear vision.
• Funding crisis: National Sport Organizations (NSOs) are starved of core funding but burdened with impossible expectations — from Safe Sport to inclusion to governance reforms. Families face skyrocketing costs just to keep kids on the ice, field, or track.
• Governance failures: Boards are often made up of insiders with conflicts of interest, little diversity, and minimal athlete representation. Compliance with governance codes isn’t even mandatory.
• Culture of silence: Maltreatment persists at every level — bullying, body shaming, sexual abuse, racism, homophobia — with perpetrators often protected while victims are ignored.

The report makes it clear: we don’t just need “tweaks.” We need transformative change.

The Harms That Don’t Go Away

The Commission heard from hundreds of survivors. Their stories mirrored mine: broken dreams, humiliation, destruction. Many had to repeat their trauma over and over just to be heard.

The report lists maltreatment in chilling detail: physical punishment, body shaming, sexual exploitation, emotional abuse, racism, sexism, and homophobia.

But what cut me deepest was this line:

“These individuals’ harms are a result of broader systemic issues … a culture of silence that protects perpetrators and institutions and allows maltreatment to persist unchecked.”

That’s exactly what I experienced.

When I blew the whistle on harassment, I turned to “SafeSport” — only to be told they didn’t have the money or resources to help me, despite months of jumping through their hoops and seeking assistance.

This was after I submitted a report of over 100 pages, detailing specific incidents of bullying, harassment, and abuse of power within my organization. Signed statements. Email receipts. Corroboration for everything.

And what did I get from my male adjudicator? The equivalent of an “oh well” and a pat on the head.

If you think sexism wasn’t at play, then I’ve got some swamp land in Florida I’d love to sell you.

And here’s the kicker: if even adults are brushed aside like this, how on earth can a child possibly navigate it?

Source: Pexels

Safe Sport Isn’t Safe Enough

The report confirms what so many of us know: “Safe Sport” as it exists today is more slogan than reality.

• Training programs are repetitive, inconsistent, and often useless. Athletes and coaches are burned out from online modules that don’t change behaviour. 

Case in point: Ethics tests that measure our test-taking ability rather than our actual ethics.

• Background checks aren’t standardized, leaving huge gaps for predators to slip through.
• Complaint mechanisms are a maze — federal, provincial, NSO, third-party — none of them aligned, many of them opaque, slow, and traumatizing. (Preaching to the choir).
• The new Canadian Safe Sport Program (launched April 2025) doesn’t even reach community sport, where most abuse happens.

Instead of preventing harm, the system waits until after kids are already hurt. That isn’t safety. That’s abandonment.

What the Report Recommends

The Commission doesn’t just expose problems; it lays out solutions. Among the most urgent:

1. Create a Centralized Sport Entity
   
   • A single, independent body to lead strategy, funding, and oversight across all sports.
     
2. Fix the Funding Model
   
   • Shift focus away from medals-only funding. Invest in community sport, parasport, and access for marginalized groups. As the parent of a child on the spectrum, I was blown away when I contacted a local organization to see if any accommodations could be made for my child, and they showed no willingness to engage in any form of discussion or attempt at accommodations.

The kicker? I had already coached there for years and knew firsthand that accommodations like softer music and lower lighting could be implemented—because I had already done so for the programs I ran for them.

3. Mandatory Governance Standards
   
   • Enforce compliance with the Canadian Sport Governance Code. Require diversity, athlete representation, transparency, and anti-racism training.
     
4. National Safe Sport Education Program
   
   • Standardized, trauma-informed training for everyone in sport, from parents to referees.
     
5. Standardized Background Screening
   
   • Make checks mandatory and consistent nationwide, with federal support for implementation.
     
6. National Safe Sport Tribunal
   
   • Harmonize complaint systems into one trauma-informed authority with legal standing.
     
7. National Registry of Sanctioned Individuals
   
   • Prevent predators from simply moving clubs or provinces.

These aren’t luxuries. They’re lifelines.

Why This Matters Beyond Sport

It’s tempting for some to dismiss this as “just sports.” But sport is where millions of Canadian kids grow up. It’s where they learn teamwork, resilience, and identity.

And when those spaces become toxic, the consequences ripple through a lifetime:

• Mental health struggles (depression, anxiety, PTSD).
• Broken trust in institutions.
• Barriers to physical activity that harm long-term health.
• Survivors are silenced, retraumatized, or driven out.

The truth is, sport reflects society. If abuse is normalized here, it spreads everywhere.

A Personal Plea

I’ve lived the trauma this report puts into statistics. I know what it’s like to leave the rink shaking, to cry in the car before practice, to pretend you’re “fine” while your body falls apart.

But I had choices. I had the privilege of walking away. At least—I did when I was a coach. When I was a young athlete, the story was different. I kept silent out of shame, thinking it must be my fault, that if I skated better and worked harder, it would stop. I didn’t see a way out.

But as a coach, I had a way out and I used it.

A child doesn’t have that option.

That’s the thought that haunts me: the kids still trapped in abusive systems, silenced by fear, manipulated by adults they trust, pressured by parents desperate for podiums. They don’t have the words, the power, or the resources to escape.

If we can’t protect them, what are we even doing?

Where Do We Go From Here?

The Future of Sport in Canada report is only a preliminary step. The hard work is ahead — and it requires courage, money, and accountability.

I also want to take a moment, as a coach, to acknowledge something important: we have to let go of our egos and always focus on what’s best for the child.

I won’t pretend I was perfect. 

There were times I raised my voice when I shouldn’t have. Times I let frustration show when I should have shown patience. Times I criticized when I should have praised. I remember those moments — every single one of them — and I did my best to apologize, to learn, and to grow so I could do better.

Coaching is no easy task. You’re working with athletes who are driven and desperate for success, and parents who are often asking why you’re not delivering it faster. But none of that excuses losing sight of the child in front of you.

Do I believe I was ever abusive? No. But I do know there were moments I was too soft when I should have pushed harder, and moments I was too hard when I should have been gentler. 

Even though I always tried my best, I still sometimes wake up thinking my best wasn’t good enough.

That’s the kind of accountability this system needs more of — from all of us.

Governments: No more reports gathering dust. Fund and enforce real change.

Organizations: Stop protecting reputations and start protecting kids.

Parents and athletes: Keep speaking up. Refuse to be silenced.

Survivors: Your stories matter. You’re not alone.

Coaches: Keep learning and growing.

Change is coming — because it has to. But it won’t happen unless we all demand it.