Tokyo, Beijing and a global pandemic: How 4 sports are advancing Safe Sport
Highlights Perhaps not surprisingly, the unofficial theme of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games has been ‘safety first.’ Postponed from 2020 to 2021 due to the COVID‑19 pandemic, the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games are scheduled to take place respectively from July 23 to August 8 and from August 24 to September 5. Even before the…
Sport climbing
Sport climbing is scheduled to make its Olympic debut in Tokyo this summer. Research shows that sport climbing is a safe sport with low injury frequency. However, climbing on artificial surfaces rather than on real rock encourages more acrobatic movements that can increase the risk of injury.
Podium hopefuls
The upcoming Tokyo Games will provide a platform for Canadian athletes to shine. For many, their development path has not been a straight line from playground to podium. Learn about RBC Training Ground and Paralympian Search – two programs designed to support athlete development in Canada and help build the pipeline of future podium hopefuls.
Impact of COVID-19 on athlete retirement
In a survey of national team athletes led by Game Plan in 2020, 34% of respondents said the postponement of the Tokyo Games changed their retirement plan from sport. Some said they would have to retire earlier than planned, while others chose to push their retirement for another year.
Team Canada logistics for Tokyo
The master project plan for an event like the Summer Olympic or Paralympic Games is approximately 20,000 lines long. The postponement of the Tokyo Games has provided the Canadian Olympic Committee and Canadian Paralympic Committee the opportunity to review, evaluate, and refine their policies and practices. These enhancements will ultimately benefit Canadian athletes and their…
Understanding deselection in competitive female youth sport
View the summary of this research here. Project summary Deselection (or being “cut”) is the elimination of an athlete from a competitive sport team based on the decisions of a coach. Given the competitive sport structure in Canada, it is inevitable that many athletes will be deselected every year. However, little is known about how…
The Ripple Effect of the Pandemic: Supporting Athletes With a Holistic Approach
“Athlete career excellence” is a concept from sport psychology concerned with an athlete’s ability to sustain a healthy, successful, and long-lasting career in sport and life. It means the athlete is striving to achieve meaningful goals in sport and life while satisfying basic psychological needs and maintaining health and wellbeing (Stambulova, Ryba & Henriksen, 2020)….
Trickle down effect? Exploring the influence of the Olympic Games on preschooler sport participation and development
Background / Context / Objective The benefits of sport participation among youth are well recognized, yet little work has focused on understanding sport participation among very young children, despite growing participation at increasingly early ages. The first objective of this project was to explore sport participation and development among preschoolers. Findings suggest that while parents…
Pandemic Silver Linings in Canadian Sport
This article is the second in a special series that explores how Canadian sport leaders are adapting and innovating to safeguard the wellbeing of athletes preparing for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games and other Major Games during a global pandemic. Read the first article here. The challenges facing Canada’s top summer athletes have never…
“Necessity is the mother of invention”
Canadian athletes have embraced Plato’s contention that “necessity is the mother of invention” during the COVID-19 pandemic, being creative with their training plans and tapping into the physical and mental resources needed to stay at the top of their game. In the SIRCuit, athletes, team leaders, and top medical experts explore the challenges and silver…