Knowledge Nuggets

In Canadian Sport History On October 9, 2003, Jordin Tootoo made history becoming the first Inuk player in the NHL. Raised in Rankin, Nunavut, Tootoo quickly became a role model for youth in Nunavut. After his brother’s suicide, Tootoo started the Team Tootoo Fund in 2011 to support suicide awareness and prevention in Canadian youth.

Leadership The notion of “values-based sport” is a popular buzz phrase, but what does it actually mean? This spring, the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) and the Public Policy Forum hosted five roundtables in cities across Canada to explore this notion and identify related actions and policies. Participants identified the need for common language and...

Did you know? Physical Literacy gives children the foundational tools they need to take part in sport, both for life-long enjoyment and for sporting success. Check out this series of evidence-based and resource-linked infographics from Saskatchewan’s Partnership for Physical Literacy.

Policy The Common Vision for Increasing Physical Activity and Reducing Sedentary Living in Canada identifies six areas of focus for collaborative action with strategic imperatives – Cultural Norms, Spaces and Places, Public Engagement, Partnerships, Leadership and Learning, and Progress. Addressing complex problems requires coordinated action from the community, provincial/territorial, and federal levels. Find out more!

This week marks Parents in Sport Week, and initiative led by Active for Life to celebrate the essential role parents play in supporting their children’s participation in sport and physical activity. The car ride home offers an opportunity for parents to debrief with their children about games and practices, but it can be fraught with...

Did you know? Be careful – running can be contagious! Research based on an online exercise tracking community discovered that runners influence each other’s training practices, even across geographic distance and regardless of variable weather. Results also indicated gains by slower runners influenced those faster (but not the reverse); and that men were influenced by...

Volunteers are at the heart of the Canadian sport system. But how can we attract and keep our volunteers? Research from German sport clubs suggests organizational context is everything. High volunteer engagement is more likely with a smaller membership base, some financial instability, and a strategic plan.

Leadership A growing body of research points to strong coach-athlete relationships as a leading example of leadership. Coach-athlete relationships that are supportive, caring, satisfying and purposeful are the cornerstone of performance success…lessons from which are easily transferrable to the office. In contrast, weak coach-athlete bonds can be limiting, distracting and consuming.

Researchers from the University of Alberta asked representatives from 60 Canadian Provincial Sport Organizations about their priorities for future research. The top 5 areas were athlete development systems, participation and retention, parenting, understanding more about the benefits of sport, and coaching. Research that addresses these priorities will be highly relevant to sport organizations, which may...

September 22 – 30, 2018, marks the fourth annual National Coaches Week – an opportunity to celebrate the tremendous positive impact coaches have on athletes and communities across Canada. In this week’s blog, learn more about online coach education modules – available FREE during National Coaches Week!