Athletics Canada holds National Membership Forum
Membership Forum 2

Athletics Canada held its first ever National Membership Forum last week as part of its Semi-Annual General Meeting (SAGM) on December 9 to 11th in Ottawa, Ontario.

More than forty leaders from various sport organizations representing the many disciplines of athletics were present at the Forum, which focused on ways to grow membership and participation at a time when the organization has just had its best Olympic Games performance since 1928.

“We feel the time has come to work as one to grow our athletics community in Canada,” said Athletics Canada CEO David Bedford, before sharing his ambitions to eventually rival other mass participation sports like hockey and soccer in membership numbers, given the popularity of the various disciplines of athletics in the country.

“We have a huge untapped opportunity to grow our community and make athletics a major sport both recreationally and from a high-performance standpoint. It was encouraging to hear that the delegates who joined us shared our goal of collectively building a community that embraces all aspects of athletics in Canada.”

The weekend’s forum led to strategies such as the need for the development of a customized membership model that will be inclusive of all Athletics Canada’s stakeholders and participants. The model will mirror World Athletics ‘World Plan’ and be more inclusive of disciplines beyond Track and Field like Road Running, Mountain, Ultra and Trail Running, Cross Country, Para, School Sport and Masters. A need to reach out and provide programming to existing user groups such as Special Olympics Canada, as well as Aboriginal and other racialized/marginalized communities was also identified.

Sport leaders at the forum continued discussions that commenced when Athletics Canada and its provincial and territorial branches last met in person for the SAGM in Saint John, New Brunswick in the fall of 2019 that saw the development of the current Strategic Plan 2028.

An extensive list of organizations were present in the Membership Forum conversations, including: Athletics Canada leadership staff, Board of Directors and Member Branches, Canada Running Series, Canadian Masters Athletics, Canadian Endurance Sports Alliance, BC Wheelchair Sports, Run Ottawa, Aboriginal Sport Circle, Special Olympics Canada, Canadian Trail and Mountain Running Association, Cruisers Para Sport Club and the Alberta Schools’ Athletic Association. The forum was made possible by the COC’s Return to Sport funding program, and facilitated by LBB Strategies.

Charlotte Brookes, National Event Director at Canada Running Series, said the collaboration between these several sport groups made her feel optimistic about a healthy new year in athletics.

"It really feels like we are kicking off 2022 on the right foot and we look forward to many more discussions on how we can continue to grow and improve this sport we all love so much."

A full report will be produced by mid-January. Athletics Canada and its membership will then begin working on the tactics and outcomes identified as action items.

Discus Form Feature Bg

Subscribe to the Media Distribution List

SUPPORT THE TEAM SUPPORT THE TEAM SUPPORT THE TEAM SUPPORT THE TEAM SUPPORT THE TEAM
Grey Hoodie
SafeSport Website Graphic Small Text

Safe Sport: Promotion. Prevention. Response.

Athletics Canada Safe Sport
surya168 akun pro thailand slot gacor maxwin akunjp daftar slot gacor judi bola situs judi bola resmi