Question Period Note: Preparations for the 2021 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games

Process of what is being done to assess whether it will be safe to have to Olympic & Paralympic games in Tokyo in summer 2021. What is being done to help prepare Canadian athletes to participate?

• The Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Committees and the Canadian National Sport Organizations, along with the Government of Canada, are closely monitoring the status of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the Games as well as Team Canada. The priority remains the health and safety of athletes and coaches.
• In collaboration with these same partners, the Government of Canada is supporting return to sport efforts across the country.
• The Government of Canada remains committed to investing in the current and next generation of Canadian Olympic and Paralympic athletes so that they may perform at their best.

• The decision to host the Games or whether to host them in a modified form, rests with the Tokyo Organizing Committee (TOCOG), the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee. TOCOG has publicly stated that the decision to hold the Games and their format should not be made until at least March 2021.
• Sport Canada is helping prepare Canadian athletes for the postponed 2021 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, the upcoming Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games and beyond by working to advance Canada’s high performance sport system through the following programs and initiatives:
o Athlete Assistance Program (AAP)
o Enhanced Excellence funding (via Own the Podium recommendations)
o Next Generation Initiative (via Own the Podium recommendations)
o Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network (COPSIN)
• The AAP, supported by a $33 million budget, provides direct financial assistance to Canadian high-performance athletes.
• The Government of Canada provided additional COVID-19 relief funding to the Canadian sport system, including $34.2 million in additional support under the Sport Support Program (SSP) to national sport organizations, multisport service organizations and the Canadian Sport Centres and $5 million in additional support to APP.
• Enhanced Excellence Funding
o This initiative “targets” athletes and/or teams that have a high probability of attaining Olympic and Paralympic medal performance results, and recommending them for focused support and funding to attain those results.
o Funds from a combination of partners, notably the Government of Canada and the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Committees, are allocated towards sports deemed to have podium-potential athletes for the next Olympic or Paralympic Games.
o Enhanced excellence funding of $64 million builds on the core sport funding provided to National Sport Organizations and the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network (COPSIN).
• Next Generation Initiative
o The Next Generation Initiative (NGI) is designed to develop the next cohort of Canada’s Olympic and Paralympic medalists and focuses on supporting athletes who are five to eight years away from potentially medaling at an Olympic or Paralympic Games.
o The NGI is based on three components: quality coaching, optimal daily training regime (including daily training environment and competition experiences), and appropriate sport science and sport medicine support.
o The NGI invests $5 million per year and is conditional on matching private sector funds, for a total investment of $10 million per year.
• Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network (COPSIN)
o The COPSIN was created to provide a world-leading, multi-sport daily training environment for athletes, coaches and practitioners through expert leadership, services and programs.
o There are four Canadian Sport Institutes (CSIs) and three Canadian Sport Centres (CSCs) situated across the country.
o CSIs are co-located with high performance-focused, facility-based daily training environments that have a critical mass of high performance athletes and training groups, while CSCs may only provide virtual or off-site services.

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