Canada's sports system is 'broken' and suffers from widespread abuse: Federal commission

The Canadian sports system is rife with abuse and fosters a culture that discourages athletes from speaking out, according to a scathing review from a commission the federal government launched to probe systemic abuse in sports.

"Maltreatment in sport, including physical punishment, sexual assault, training while injured, humiliation, intimidation, isolation tactics, failure to provide medical care, discrimination and exploitation continue to permeate at all levels," said Justice Lise Maisonneuve, who leads the Future of Sport in Canada Commission.

Maisonneuve spoke on Thursday afternoon, shortly after the three-person commission released its preliminary report on the issue.

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Lise Maisonneuve, head of the Future of Sport in Canada Commission, says BIPOC, 2SLGBTQ+ and para-athletes in particular face a lack of opportunity across all levels of sport in her report to enhance safe sport and improve the sport system in Canada.

It found that the federal government's current emphasis on "high performance and medal achievements" does not align with the Canadian sport community's desire for a system that values success but also embodies respect and diversity while promoting health and well-being.

The report also said there is a "lack of access and opportunity for many, but more particularly for para-athletes, Black and Indigenous and people of colour and those of the 2SLGBTQI+ communities.

"And when access and opportunities have been provided, they have often come at a cost to the dignity and safety of many individuals. Canadian sport has lost its way."

The commission, which started its work last year, is making 71 preliminary recommendations meant to enhance safe sport and improve Canada's sporting system at large.

To better respond to safe sport issues across Canada, the commission is calling for the federal government to collaborate with provinces and territories to create a national safe sport authority or tribunal to administer relevant legislation.

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CBC News Network's Hannah Thibedeau speaks with attorney and victim advocate Rachael Denhollander.

The commission is also recommending the proposed authority maintain a national registry of sanctioned individuals — a major gap identified in its report.

"There is currently no statutory requirement for National Sport Organizations (NSOs) to maintain or publish registries of individuals who have been sanctioned in relation to maltreatment in sport. It is also not a condition to receive federal government funding," the report said.

The report recommends the federal government encourage provinces and territories to mandate background screening requirements as a funding requirement for their respective sport organizations.

Canada's NSOs are also in dire need of extra funding, the report said, noting they "operate with static or diminishing funding levels that have not kept pace with inflation nor reflected increasing expectations over the past two decades."

The report says "funding and attention have too often been concentrated on elite, high-performance athletes, with insufficient focus on the burgeoning needs of youth and local communities."

To address the issue, the commission recommends the federal government "urgently" increase core funding to NSOs and national parasport organizations, consolidate sources of federal funding, develop a long-term funding strategy and improve the application process for receiving federal cash.

Amelia Cline, managing director of Athletes Empowered, told CBC News she's pleased the report identifies an overemphasis on results and recognizes that "maltreatment is happening right down to the grassroots."

Cline previously told CBC News she experienced abuse as a child at the hands of her coaches until she quit gymnastics when she turned 13. That abuse, she said, included psychological maltreatment and extreme training that left her with a pelvic injury.

The commission's proposed national registry would help parents become more informed about who is coaching their children and stop coaches who are in trouble in one jurisdiction from running to another province or territory, Cline said on Thursday.

"Hopefully the registry would extend also to administrators and we would like to see people who have enabled this behaviour also receive sanctions and have their names on a public registry."

Laura Robinson, an investigative sports journalist, said she's glad the commission recommended an independent body be formed to oversee Canadian sports.

"When sport talks about itself as a big family, it really is a big family. And I think we need this completely separate entity to investigate and oversee sport," Robinson said.

But Robinson isn't sure if the federal government will take the recommendations seriously. She noted that Canada doesn't have a full-fledged sports minister.

Instead, it has a secretary of state for sport — a junior role in Prime Minister Mark Carney's government.

In a statement released Thursday afternoon, Secretary of State for Sport Adam van Koeverden said the federal government welcomes the preliminary report and looks forward to the final report to be released next year.

"Abuse and maltreatment have no place in sport. We commend everyone who took part in the commission's work to this point. The voices of survivors were heard, and we recognize the bravery and courage it took for them to come forward," van Koeverden said.

"Our shared goal remains to build a robust, safe and inclusive sport system, one that we will continue to advance together. Sport has the power to inspire and drive positive change. It can build confidence, inspire leadership and encourage teamwork — values that strengthen communities and enhance the well-being of Canadians."

The commissions' activities will culminate in the National Summit on the Future of Sport, which will take place in Ottawa in less than two weeks.