Jenny Lim

As the Canadian sport system recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, and we continue to hear about the impacts of decades of harm and abuse spanning all levels of sport, Canadians are demanding more of sport providers. They are challenging leaders to deliver safer, better, and more inclusive sport. Girls and women are at the forefront of this call for change.

The Rally Report 2022 details how 4,500 Canadian girls and women, and over 350 women sport leaders, experience sport in 2022. Findings show that Canadian girls and their parents want sport back after the COVID-19 pandemic; however, they want to participate in a sport system that is better than it was before the pandemic:

• Half of all adolescent girls aged 13-18 in Canada are not currently participating in sport.

• Since the pandemic, 14 per cent of girls report declining sport participation.

The findings reveal significant barriers preventing girls from accessing safe, quality sport, including:

• 1-in-3 Canadian girls report that coaches and organizations are not addressing important safety issues within girls’ sport.

• Almost half (46 per cent) of parents report low-quality programming as a barrier to their 6- to 12-year-old girls’ ongoing participation in sport.

• Less than half of coaches receive training on topics related to keeping girls in sport, including gender equity, body image, and mental health.

This presentation will highlight key insights from the report, and calls to action for sport and recreation leaders, coaches, teachers, school admin and government.