Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport – The Ministry is pleased to announce Jennifer Bennett as the 2019 Chef de Mission for Team Ontario.

Jennifer is a Professor in the Sport Management & Sport Business Management Programs at Humber College. Jennifer is also actively engaged in the amateur sport sector and was most recently the Chef de Mission for Team Ontario at the 2017 Canada Games where she led a successful delegation of 450+ athletes, coaches, managers and mission staff across 16 different sports. Jennifer holds a Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from Brock University and a Master’s degree in Sport Administration from Western Michigan University.

Prior to joining Humber College, she was a Senior Policy Advisor for the Government of Ontario’s Pan/Parapan American Games Secretariat. Throughout her 20 year career in sport, she has also held positions with the Bid Team for the 2015 Pan/Parapan Am Games, the Sport and Recreation Branch of the former Ministry of Health Promotion and Sport, the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) and the Ontario Volleyball Association.

Jennifer will work closely with the Ministry Games Unit to oversee the planning for the 2019 Canada Winter Games in what will be a great experience for our Ontario athletes. Please join us in congratulating Jennifer.

Applications to select an Assistant Chef will be posted on the Sport Information Resource Centre website in December 2017.

About Team Ontario

Team Ontario comes together as a group of approximately 350-450 athletes, coaches, managers, chaperones, support staff and mission staff from across the province to compete at the Canada Winter Games and the Canada Summer Games. The team is represented in all sports competing in the Games. The Canada Games are an important component of our sport system, and a key event in the development of Ontario’s young athletes. The Canada Games provide athletes with an opportunity to compete in a multi-sport atmosphere and prepare them as the next generation of international competitors. Follow Team Ontario on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook: @GoTeamOntario.

About the Canada Games

The Canada Games are a national multi-sport competition with participation from every province and territory in Canada. The Games are held every two years, alternating between winter and summer. The 2019 Canada Winter Games will be held February 15 to March 3 in Red Deer, bringing together approximately 3600 athletes, coaches, and managers from every province and territory to compete in 16 sports. Visit www.canadagames.ca.

About Games Ontario

Team Ontario is supported by the Ontario Government, through its Games Ontario program. This program delivers or supports multi-sport events, including the Ontario Winter and Summer Games for youth, the Ontario 55+ Summer and Winter Games, the Ontario Parasport Games, the 2017 North American Indigenous Games and the 2017 Invictus Games. Supporting Ontario sporting events is part of Game ON – The Ontario Government’s Sport Plan, which is encouraging as many people as possible to play organized sports, helping Ontario’s high-performance athletes pursue excellence and promoting increased tourism and economic development.

 

###

Contacts:

Justan Steele

Program Consultant, Games Unit / 2019 Team Ontario Assistant Chef de Mission

Sport, Recreation and Community Programs Division

Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport

416-314-5319

Justan.Steele@ontario.ca

Jennifer Bennett

2019 Team Ontario Chef de Mission

teamontario2019@gmail.com

 

Russell Zavitz

Manager, Games Unit

Sport, Recreation and Community Programs Division

Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport

416-314-7682

Russell.Zavitz@ontario.ca