Southwest Nova Speed Skating Club awarded $10,000 grand prize; Brampton, Lethbridge, Moose Jaw and Châteauguay clubs each earn $2,500 grant
OTTAWA, ONTARIO – Five local speed skating clubs – from Nova Scotia, Ontario, Saskatchewan, Alberta and Quebec – used funds received from the most recent Intact Insurance Club Excellence Award to support important grassroots development initiatives in their respective communities this past season, helping make the sport more accessible.
As grand prize winner, the Southwest Nova Speed Skating Club (Digby, N.S.) received a $10,000 grant to support the purchase of skates to ensure they can accommodate growing interest within their community, as well as protective mats so they can host expand programing and host competitions. The newly formed club will also receive a visit from two National Program athletes as part of next spring’s Medals on Tour initiative.
“We have been so fortunate to be able to introduce speed skating to rural Nova Scotians and new immigrants for whom the sport was unknown. We couldn’t have done it without the support of clubs across the province who lent us enough equipment to get started last year. We grew so fast that we ran out of borrowed equipment and needed to find more ice time. There are now 34 skaters involved, and a third of the club is learning English in an inclusive environment. The club is full of diversity, and they are supported by the community, leading to increased moral and a feeling of belonging. Funding from the Intact Insurance Club Excellence Award will enable us to buy our own protective mats, safety equipment and ice time, which will help us offer this sport to families who need it most and sometimes can afford it least,” shared Alison Nuttall, President, Southwest Nova Speed Skating Club.
The Digby based club becomes the third from Nova Scotia to win the Club Excellence Award since it was launched in 2019, joining Dartmouth Crossing Speed Skating Club in 2021 and Cobequid Speed Skating Club in 2023.
The four other finalists clubs – Lethbridge Speed Skating Association (AB), Brampton Ontario Speed Skaters (ON), Kiwanis Speed Skating Club of Moose Jaw (SK) and CPV Châteauguay (QC) – will each bring home a $2,5000 prize for their projects to help finance their respective initiatives, which are detailed in their respective videos below.
Generously sponsored by Speed Skating Canada’s long-standing partner, Intact Insurance, the Club Excellence Award recognizes the contributions of local speed skating clubs to sport and community development and the importance of grassroots programs to high-performance success. Since 2010, Intact Insurance has donated a total of $460,000 directly to speed skating clubs through the former Podium Tracker program and current Club Excellence Award.
“Intact Insurance is honored to be a sponsor of Speed Skating Canada and to witness firsthand the positive impact our partnership has had on local clubs nationwide, empowering athletes to achieve new heights. Congratulations to this year’s grand prize winning Southwest Nova Speed Skating Club, as well as the four other outstanding finalists from Brampton, Lethbridge, Moose Jaw and Châteauguay,” explained Marie-Pierre Leclerc, Vice President, Marketing – Intact Insurance Customer Experience & Insights.
Dozens of clubs from across the country submitted project ideas, ranging from diversity and inclusion programming; to the purchase of new safety mats or skating equipment; to open house initiatives that increase awareness of the sport. Those submissions were evaluated based on the need in the local community, the potential for positive impact, the plan and resources in place to roll out the project and the ability to measure its success.
Speed Skating Canada launched their 2024-25 Awards Program earlier this week. Members of the speed skating community are encouraged to submit their nomination for the Intact Insurance Club Excellence Award, as well as for over a dozen other awards that recognize the important contributions of athletes, coaches, officials and volunteers. The nomination deadline is May 31, 2025.