Sports

Sport Minister announces federal commission to probe abuse and maltreatment

Published

9 months ago

December 12, 2023

Canada’s Sports Minister Carla Qualtrough speaks to media at the Lakeside Stadium in Melbourne on July 30, on the eve of the Women’s World Cup football match between Canada and Australia.WILLIAM WEST/AFP/Getty Images

The federal government is launching a national commission to examine abuse and maltreatment in sport, after facing calls from a growing number of athletes across the country to confront the problem.

A commissioner with a legal or judicial background, independent of both government and the sport system, will be chosen to lead the process. That person will be joined by two advisers, yet to be named, Minister of Sport Carla Qualtrough said. One will be an expert in victims’ rights and child protection, while the other will have a background in sport.

The commission will spend 18 months examining problems of poor governance and oversight in Canadian sport, leading to recommendations on how to make the system safer for young children and elite athletes alike. It will also focus on ways to better protect athletes who disclose allegations of abuse and wrongdoing from retribution from their coaches or federations.

“Bottom line, we need to make fundamental changes to our sport system that will lead to long-overdue cultural change,” Ms. Qualtrough said. “We need to embed accountability, integrity and safe sport into everything we do.”

The process is not the national inquiry athletes’ groups have been demanding for more than a year, but Ms. Qualtrough said it is designed to take the same approach, without incurring delays and complications associated with having to navigate different federal and provincial jurisdictions that govern sport in Canada. She said the commission is based on the model used by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which examined the harms caused by residential schools.

Allegations of sexual, physical and mental abuse have been raised by athletes in at least 15 national sports organizations, known as NSOs, including gymnastics, hockey, track and field, artistic swimming, bobsleigh, rowing, boxing, fencing and others. Concerns have been raised at all levels, from grassroots local clubs to provincial organizations and the federations that oversee each sport nationally.

In dozens of cases, athletes have told the government their complaints were ignored or not investigated properly within their sport. In addition to those problems, Hockey Canada last year was accused by federal MPs of trying to cover up an alleged sexual assault involving members of the 2018 national junior team, prompting further calls for a probe into how NSOs conduct themselves in cases of alleged abuse and assault.

Ms. Qualtrough said the commission’s findings will be made public. Those will then be discussed at a national summit on safe sport, before final recommendations to reform the system are ultimately made.

The commission will have an estimated budget of between $10-million and $15-million. In making the announcement, Ms. Qualtrough apologized to athletes who testified at parliamentary hearings this year, detailing how their cases were mishandled, along with others who have gone public with similar complaints.

“Athletes and other sport participants who have been harmed, abused or mistreated in the Canadian sports system, particularly those who were maltreated as children, I’m sorry this happened to you. The sport system did not protect you or hold to account those who hurt you,” Ms. Qualtrough said.

“The starting point for the commission will be a recognition that bad things have happened and continue to happen in Canadian sport. Survivors will not need to prove they have experienced harm. We know you have, we believe you and support you, your experiences will inform recommendations for the future of sport, better and safer sport in Canada.”

Global Athlete, an advocacy group that represents athletes in multiple sports in calling for a national inquiry, is disappointed the government stopped short of one.

“Today’s announcement was a clear admission by the Canadian government that Canadian sport is broken and the toxic culture of abuse needs reform,” said Rob Koehler, director-general for Global Athlete.

“We are disappointed the minister did not support survivors’ and advocates’ calls for a national inquiry. Moving forward the devil will be in the details,” he said.

The selection of the two special advisers, and how independent they are, will be important, he said, given their influence over the recommendations. An inquiry would have also had the power to compel documents and subpoena witnesses.

However, Ms. Qualtrough said calling a national inquiry would have created unnecessary delays, given the complexities of the various federal and provincial jurisdictions that oversee sport.

“A public inquiry has its benefit in certain contexts. But the formality and legal rigidity of that type of process didn’t lend itself to the concerns that I have around making sure it’s a safe place for victims and survivors,” Ms. Qualtrough said. “Sport is primarily a provincial jurisdiction and we would have to spend a lot of time negotiating terms of references and process details with the provinces and territories. It could take a year before that negotiation concluded.”

She said the process does not need to start from scratch.

“We do not need to revisit, almost, the issue of whether there’s a safe sport crisis in this country. That’s the starting point for this. So a two-year process that could result in a finding that bad things happen in sport, I’ll stipulate: Bad things happen in sport.”

The commission process also avoids victims being forced to testify under cross-examination, Ms. Qualtrough said. “We do not want cross-examination of victims, we do not want people to have to prove they were traumatized. And quite frankly, the [Truth and Reconciliation Commission] model is a much safer approach in that context.”

Ms. Qualtrough, a lawyer and Paralympic swimmer who is visually impaired, was named Sport Minister in July, after previously holding the portfolio from 2015-17. She said she regrets not focusing more on abuse and oversight back then, at a time when concussions dominated the agenda.

In the case of Hockey Canada, the minister was asked whether she thought it was appropriate that former junior players allegedly involved in raping a woman in London, Ont., in 2018 were now permitted to play in the NHL, potentially earning million-dollar salaries while the matter is still under police investigation.

“That’s a tough question. I don’t know if it’s appropriate. But what I can tell you is that our system right now lets that happen,” she said. “And through the process of the commission, it’s something that we need to figure out as a country – if we want that to be able to happen. Because right now, the system permits this to happen. And we just have to decide if that’s the sport [system] we want.”

The hockey players have not been named publicly. The minister said she does not believe she has the authority to call on the NHL to suspend players under investigation.

“The research I’ve done on this is it’s a very complicated legal, employment law, criminal law, and contract law mismatch. I’m not sure I have the authority to do that – the teeth to do that. But also, we don’t know the final outcome yet.”

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Sports

Red Wings sign Moritz Seider to 7-year deal worth nearly $60M

Published

2 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings made another investment this week in a young standout, signing Moritz Seider to a seven-year contract worth nearly $60 million.

The Red Wings announced the move with the 23-year-old German defenseman on Thursday, three days after keeping 22-year-old forward Lucas Raymond with a $64.6 million, eight-year deal.

Detroit drafted Seider with the No. 6 pick overall eight years ago and he has proven to be a great pick. He has 134 career points, the most by a defenseman drafted in 2019.

He was the NHL’s only player to have at least 200 hits and block 200-plus shots last season, when he scored a career-high nine goals and had 42 points for the second straight year.

Seider won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2022 after he had a career-high 50 points.

Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman is banking on Seider, whose contract will count $8.55 million annually against the cap, and Raymond to turn a rebuilding team into a winner.

Detroit has failed to make the playoffs in eight straight seasons, the longest postseason drought in franchise history.

The Red Wings, who won four Stanley Cups from 1997 to 2008, have been reeling since their run of 25 straight postseasons ended in 2016.

Detroit was 41-32-9 last season and finished with a winning record for the first time since its last playoff appearance.

Yzerman re-signed Patrick Kane last summer and signed some free agents, including Vladimir Tarasenko to a two-year contract worth $9.5 million after he helped the Florida Panthers hoist the Cup.

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Veterans Tyson Beukeboom, Karen Paquin lead Canada’s team at WXV rugby tournament

Published

3 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

Veterans Tyson Beukeboom and Karen Paquin will lead Canada at the WXV 1 women’s rugby tournament starting later this month in the Vancouver area.

WXV 1 includes the top three teams from the Women’s Six Nations (England, France and Ireland) and the top three teams from the Pacific Four Series (Canada, New Zealand, and the United States).

Third-ranked Canada faces No. 4 France, No. 7 Ireland and No. 1 England in the elite division of the three-tiered WXV tournament that runs Sept. 29 to Oct. 12 in Vancouver and Langley, B.C. No. 2 New Zealand and the eighth-ranked U.S. make up the six-team WVX 1 field.

“Our preparation time was short but efficient. This will be a strong team,” Canada coach Kevin Rouet said in a statement. “All the players have worked very hard for the last couple of weeks to prepare for WXV and we are excited for these next three matches and for the chance to play on home soil here in Vancouver against the best rugby teams in the world.

“France, Ireland and England will each challenge us in different ways but it’s another opportunity to test ourselves and another step in our journey to the Rugby World Cup next year.”

Beukeboom serves as captain in the injury absence of Sophie de Goede. The 33-year-old from Uxbridge, Ont., earned her Canadian-record 68th international cap in Canada’s first-ever victory over New Zealand in May at the Pacific Four Series.

Twenty three of the 30 Canadian players selected for WXV 1 were part of that Pacific Four Series squad.

Rouet’s roster includes the uncapped Asia Hogan-Rochester, Caroline Crossley and Rori Wood.

Hogan-Rochester and Crossley were part of the Canadian team that won rugby sevens silver at the Paris Olympics, along with WXV teammates Fancy Bermudez, Olivia Apps, Alysha Corrigan and Taylor Perry. Wood is a veteran of five seasons at UBC.

The 37-year-old Paquin, who has 38 caps for Canada including the 2014 Rugby World Cup, returns to the team for the first time since the 2021 World Cup.

Canada opens the tournament Sept. 29 against France at B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver before facing Ireland on Oct. 5 at Willoughby Stadium at Langley Events Centre, and England on Oct. 12 at B.C. Place.

The second-tier WXV 2 and third-tier WXV 3 are slated to run Sept. 27 to Oct. 12, in South Africa and Dubai, respectively.

WXV 2 features Australia, Italy, Japan, Scotland, South Africa and Wales while WXV 3 is made up of Fiji, Hong Kong, Madagascar, the Netherlands, Samoa and Spain.

The tournament has 2025 World Cup qualification implications, although Canada, New Zealand and France, like host England, had already qualified by reaching the semifinals of the last tournament.

Ireland, South Africa, the U.S., Japan, Fiji and Brazil have also booked their ticket, with the final six berths going to the highest-finishing WXV teams who have not yet qualified through regional tournaments.

Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team WXV 1 Squad

Forwards

Alexandria Ellis, Ottawa, Stade Français Paris (France); Brittany Kassil, Guelph, Ont., Guelph Goats; Caroline Crossley, Victoria, Castaway Wanderers; Courtney Holtkamp, Rimbey, Alta., Red Deer Titans Rugby; DaLeaka Menin, Vulcan, Alta., Exeter Chiefs (England); Emily Tuttosi, Souris, Man., Exeter Chiefs (England); Fabiola Forteza, Quebec City, Stade Bordelais (France); Gabrielle Senft, Regina, Saracens (England); Gillian Boag, Calgary, Gloucester-Hartpury (England); Julia Omokhuale, Calgary, Leicester Tigers (England); Karen Paquin, Quebec City, Club de rugby de Quebec; Laetitia Royer, Loretteville, Que., ASM Romagnat (France); McKinley Hunt, King City, Ont., Saracens (England); Pamphinette Buisa, Gatineau, Que., Ottawa Irish; Rori Wood, Sooke, B.C., College Rifles RFC; Sara Cline, Edmonton, Leprechaun Tigers; Tyson Beukeboom, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England);

Backs

Alexandra Tessier, Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton, Que., Exeter Chiefs (England); Alysha Corrigan, Charlottetown, P.E.I., CRFC; Asia Hogan-Rochester, Toronto, Toronto Nomads; Claire Gallagher, Caledon, Ont., Leicester Tigers (England); Fancy Bermudez, Edmonton, Saracens (England); Julia Schell, Uxbridge, Ont., Ealing Trailfinders (England); Justine Pelletier, Rivière-du-Loup, Que, Stade Bordelais (France); Mahalia Robinson, Fulford, Que., Town of Mount Royal RFC; Olivia Apps, Lindsay, Ont., Lindsay RFC; Paige Farries, Red Deer, Alta., Saracens (England); Sara Kaljuvee, Ajax, Ont., Westshore RFC; Shoshanah Seumanutafa, White Rock, B.C., Counties Manukau (New Zealand); Taylor Perry, Oakville, Ont., Exeter Chiefs (England).

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Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.

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Vancouver Canucks star goalie Thatcher Demko working through rare muscle injury

Published

3 hours ago

September 19, 2024

Anne Joseph

PENTICTON, B.C. – Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko says he’s been working his way back from a rare lower-body muscle injury since being sidelined in last season’s playoffs.

The 28-year-old all star says the rehabilitation process has been frustrating, but he has made good progress in recent weeks and is confident he’ll be able to return to playing.

He says he and his medical team have spent the last few months talking to specialists around the world, and have not found a single other hockey player who has dealt with the same injury.

Demko missed several weeks of the last season with a knee ailment and played just one game in Vancouver’s playoff run last spring before going down with the current injury.

He was not on the ice with his teammates as the Canucks started training camp in Penticton, B.C., on Thursday, but skated on his own before the sessions began.

Demko posted a 35-14-2 record with a .918 percentage, a 2.45 goals-against average and five shutouts for Vancouver last season.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.

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