Continued Support for Canada's Top Athletes and Coaches in Atlantic Canada

HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA--(Marketwired - April 14, 2015) - Department of Canadian Heritage

Gerald Keddy, Member of Parliament (South Shore-St. Margaret's), on behalf of the Honourable Bal Gosal, Minister of State (Sport), today reiterated the Government of Canada's continued support for the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network. The Government of Canada is investing close to $16 million per year in the national network of seven Canadian Sport Centres and Institutes, which provide world-class training, sport medicine, sport science and lifestyle services and support to Canada's top athletes and coaches.

Mr. Keddy was joined by Canadian sport leaders and athletes as they toured the facilities. The Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic is a legacy facility from the 2011 Halifax Canada Games.

Quick Facts

• Canadian Sport Centres and Institutes were created in the late 1990s by a unique national partnership between Sport Canada, the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Coaching Association of Canada to enhance the daily training environment of Canada's high-performance athletes and coaches. In each case, the provincial governments are also funding partners. The Canadian Paralympic Committee has since become a funding partner, while Own the Podium is a high-performance sport partner.
  
  
• In 2014-15, the Government of Canada, through Sport Canada's Sport Support Program, invested $15,854,724 in the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network, including $625,844 to the Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic.
  
  
• In the four years prior to the London 2012 and the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games, the Government invested over $2.8 million and $2.7 million, respectively, in the programs and services provided by the Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic. Looking forward through the Toronto 2015 Pan Am and Parapan Am Games to the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, our Government is continuing to provide our top athletes and coaches in Atlantic Canada with what they need to compete-including over $1.9 million to the Centre between 2013-14 and the end of 2015-16.
  
  
• The Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic provides services to 75 carded athletes and to one national team coach. The CSC Atlantic has a longstanding and very successful partnership with canoe/kayak, and also works with sailing and para-sailing.
  
  
• Supporting this national network ensures each centre and institute is able to continue providing world-class services and programs to Canada's top athletes and coaches, enabling them to continue their relentless pursuit of podium performances wherever they compete.
  
  
• During the Year of Sport of Canada, we are celebrating our athletes and their role in inspiring all Canadians-especially our young people-as they compete at home in major international events throughout the year, including the upcoming FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 and the Toronto 2015 Pan Am and Parapan Am Games.
  
  
• When we embrace the power of sport and lead more active lifestyles, we benefit as individuals but we also build healthier, stronger communities. That is why the Government has doubled the Children's Fitness Tax Credit to $1,000. This, together with the expansion of the Universal Child Care Benefit, will help offset the costs of parents enrolling their children in organized sports.

Quotes

"The Government of Canada remains a proud and significant funding partner in the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network. Our support ensures that each centre and institute has the resources required to help our athletes and coaches compete against the world's best-and win. Especially during the Year of Sport in Canada, our Government continues to invest in sport at record levels because we know the impact it has: from local playgrounds and recreational sport leagues all the way to high-performance athletes, sport is vital to the cultural fabric of our nation. Our country is a leading sport nation, and we want to keep it that way."

- The Honourable Bal Gosal, Minister of State (Sport)

"During the Year of Sport in Canada, we are celebrating the role that sport plays in our national identity. Our athletes have a huge role to play in our country's reputation as leading sport nation. The Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic ensures that our top athletes and coaches across Atlantic Canada have what they need to continue the rich tradition of sport excellence at the national and international level, including this summer's FIFA Women's World Cup and the Toronto 2015 Pan Am and Parapan Am Games."

- Gerald Keddy, Member of Parliament (South Shore-St. Margaret's)

"The funding from the Government of Canada has allowed the Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic to provide leading performance services to the athletes and coaches in Atlantic Canada. As a result of this ongoing support, along with our provincial government partners, progressively more athletes from the region have made national teams and represented Canada at world championships each year since 2011."

- Ken Bagnell, President, Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic

Associated Links

Canada.ca/Sport

Canadian Sport Centre Atlantic

Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network

FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015

Toronto 2015 Pan Am and Parapan Am Games

Children's Fitness Tax Credit

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