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TORONTO – A new study shows that more Canadian girls are participating in organized sports, but they are still lagging behind boys.

The Rally Report was commissioned by Canadian Women & Sport and done by IMI Consulting.

More than 5,000 Canadians, including 2,000 girls and women, responded to the study.

The report shows that 63 per cent of Canadian girls play organized sports weekly, compared to 68 per cent of boys.

Despite this, nearly four in ten girls are still missing out on the benefits of sport, a number that rises to five in ten by age 16.

Adolescence and the middle teenage years seem to take a toll on girls’ participation in sports with the report finding that dropout rates increase at age 16 and accelerate through their late teens, with more than one in five leaving sport during adolescence.

The report found a few reasons why dropout rates surge in girls’ teen years.

Two in five girls report that comments about their appearance, clothing, or religious attire impact their participation in sport.

One in two girls said participating in sport positively influences their body image, though one in three report that comments about their bodies undermine their confidence.

Nearly one in two girls aged 13 to 18 feel that their menstrual cycle impacts their participation in sport.

Canadian Women & Sport is a national non-profit with a 43-year history of work as the leading voice and authority on women and sport.

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

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GENEVA (AP) — An event billed as Switzerland’s biggest esports competition has been canceled after the host team’s founder posted an anti-abortion comment on social media, triggering outrage that led three rival squads to pull out.

The “Take the Throne” event, involving a video game that features cars that score goals with a ball like in soccer, was to take place Nov. 23 at the Batiment des Forces Motrices venue in Geneva.

The uproar erupted after BDS team founder Patrice Bailo de Spoelberch — the initials of his surname form the name — posted on social media Wednesday that “A woman who dares to use abortion should lose the right to ever have children.”

The post has since been taken down from X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, but several critics of the comment relayed a screenshot of it.

The next day, three teams among the eight invited to participate — Gentle Mates, Karmine Corp. and Team Vitality — issued a joint statement saying they were pulling out.

They condemned the “disrespectful and controversial” comment and said they “can in no way accept associating our clubs and our values with such speech.”

BDS posted a message the same day saying “the statements made by our founder are his own and do not reflect the vision and values of our players, employees, partners, fans or staff members.”

The team said it was “compelled” to cancel the event and that “internal measures will be taken promptly.”

Bailo de Spoelberch posted an apology on Thursday, calling his initial statement “extremely clumsy” and saying it “does not reflect my true thoughts.”

“Every woman must have control over her body and is free to terminate a pregnancy,” he wrote. “Again, sorry to all the women and people I offended.”

In a testament of the growing popularity of esports, the International Olympic Committee has taken steps toward adding the first Olympic Esports Games to its events in a bid to attract young audiences.

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Canada has dropped one place to No. 23 in the World Rugby rankings after a 35-27 loss to Romania in Bucharest on Saturday.

The Canadian men were replaced at No. 22 by Hong Kong, which defeated visiting Brazil 38-17 on Sunday.

Romania was unchanged at No. 20 while Brazil fell two spots to No. 28.

South Africa remained No. 1 with Ireland replacing New Zealand at No. 2. The All Blacks slipped to No. 3 after their 30-29 weekend loss at No. 4 France.

South Africa beat No. 7 England 29-20 while Ireland downed No. 5 Argentina 22-19.

The United States continued its climb, moving up to No. 15 after dispatching Tonga 36-12. The Pacific Islanders. who started the month in 16th place, fell to No. 19, replaced at No. 18 by Uruguay.

The Canadians put on a far better show against Romania than a week earlier in a 44-14 loss to No. 21 Chile, also at Stadionul Arcul de Triumf. But Canada’s effort fell short with several late attacks fizzling due to a handling error or penalty.

The final test of the year proved to be a fifth straight defeat for Canada, which has won just two of its last 12 outings.

Captain Lucas Rumball and Siôn Parry scored tries for Canada, which was also awarded a penalty try. Peter Nelson kicked two penalties and two conversions.

The Canadian men finished the year with a 1-6-0 record.

Canada coach Kingsley Jones is preparing his young side for World Cup qualifying, which starts next year via the Pacific Nations Cup. He gave three players their debut off the bench Saturday with two others making their first start.

The loss to Chile was the first meeting between the two since October 2021, when the South Americans ended the Canada’s qualification bid for the 2023 World Cup with a 54-46 aggregate victory in their two-legged series.

The Canadian women are ranked second in the world behind England.

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

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.