Sport Canada: Application Requirements Summary

Submitted to the CAFA Board by Helen Lightfoot,
February 9th 2005

Background

The Canadian Association of Freediving and Apnea is committed to fulfilling the requirements for eligibility to apply to Sport Canada.

Sport Canada is the federal government body which is "dedicated to valuing and strengthening the Canada experience" www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/sportcanada. The agency provides various assistance programs to eligible national sport organizations. Detailed criteria for eligibility are outlined in Sport Funding and Accountability Framework. The framework operates on a five year cycle, therefore the next application deadline to complete process for commencement of the 2010-2015 cycle will be in June 2009.

Summary of Criteria

There are three sections to the Eligibility Criteria:
A: General criteria
B: National scope
C: International scope
Applicants must meet all the criteria in Section A, plus all the criteria in either Section B or Section C.

Recommendations

That CAFA prioritizes the translation of its Mission, Constitution, By-laws and Objects into French
(note: not necessarily the whole website, although that may be the ultimate goal).
That CAFA formulates a multi-year plan to meet these requirements.
That CAFA focuses on meeting Section A requirements (in total seventeen, five are already met); followed at a later date by those of Section B (three requirements).
That CAFA identifies established formal policies regarding sound coaching practices, equity and access for women and persons with a disability, and the like, so that these policies can be formally adopted by the association.

The following text outlines the requirements for Sections A and B. The places where CAFA is lacking in meeting the requirements are indicated by bold text.

Section A: General Criteria

A1. The sport meets the criteria outlined in the Sport Canada "Definition of Sport". (Annex A1)
A2. The NSO is the single national governing body for all aspects of the sport in Canada, including its disciplines and events. (Annex A2)
A3. The NSO has a volunteer leadership structure that is democratically elected by the membership. (Annex A3)
A4. The NSO has a constitution, by-laws and objects that are written and available in both official languages.
A5. The NSO is incorporated under Part II of the Canada Corporations Act. (Annex A5)
A6. The NSO has independently audited financial statements for each of the last four fiscal years. (Annex A6)
A7. The NSO is committed to providing its members with technically and ethically sound and safe sport programs and content based on established Long Term Participant/Athlete Development Model principles. (Annex A7)
NSOs are expected to have a sport-specific Long Term Participant/Athlete Development Model (LTP/ADM). Such a model should be based on recognized LTP/ADM principles and be adopted and used by the NSO and its Provincial, Territorial or Sectional constituents to promote a greater integration and harmonization of NSO/PSO programs and competition structures.
A8. The NSO has a multi-year plan, ratified by the Board of Directors. This plan should identify measurable outcomes across the full range of sport development and be based on the NSO's Long Term Participant/Athlete Development Model. (Annex A8)
NSOs not funded by Sport Canada in 2003-2004 must include with their application: a copy of their current multi-year plan, or copies of their annual reports for the past four years, or a summary of activities and actions of the past four years.
A9. The NSO is formally committed to the principle of technically and ethically sound coaching education and conduct. (Annex A9)
Formal commitment is to be demonstrated by having adopted the Coaching Association of Canada's National Coaching Certification Program, including the transition to CBET. If the NSO does not have NCCP accreditation, it must apply for NCCP accreditation. NSO is expected to have a Coach's Code of Conduct. NSOs having programs for athletes with a disability will be expected to demonstrate progress in developing their coaching programs and/or modules for athletes with a disability.
A10. The NSO is formally committed to the principle of technically and ethically sound officiating education and conduct. (Annex A10)
Sport officials play a fundamental and essential role in ensuring the fair and ethical conduct of sport on the playing field. Formal commitment to Officiating Education and Conduct is demonstrated by having implemented a formal training and certification program for officials, including having classifiers in sports for athletes with a disability.
A11. The NSO has formally adopted the Canadian Policy on Doping in Sport. Once introduced, the NSO is expected to formally endorse the new Canadian Policy Against Doping in Sport and adopt the Canadian Anti-Doping Program.
A12. The NSO has a formal policy on Official Languages that complies with Sport Canada contribution guidelines on Official Languages. (Annex A12)
A policy on Official Languages should include how the organization commits to promoting Canada's two official languages within its operations. This policy should extend to the delivery of services in both French and English to athletes within the sport system and to communications with the public. Refer to the 2004-2005 Sport Canada Contribution Guidelines 9.2 (p.39) for detail on communications with and services to the public. NSOs not funded in 2003-2004 must submit a copy of their policies or procedures demonstrating compliance with guidelines.
A13. The NSO has a formal policy or policies demonstrating commitment to equity and access, notably for women, persons with a disability and Aboriginal peoples as athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers and leaders. (Annex A13)
A formal policy on women and sport is not required for NSOs which exceed 40% female participation or representation in all areas (athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers and leaders). Non-funded NSOs must submit copy of their policies or procedures demonstrating compliance with A13.
A14. The NSO has a formal policy on athlete centeredness and can demonstrate the direct involvement of high performance athletes in decision-making. (Annex A14)
Involvement in decision-making is intended to mean decisions concerning national team athletes. NSOs must ensure that opportunities and mechanisms exist for national team athletes to be informed and to provide input on matters affecting them. NSOs must also provide national team athletes with access to due process.
A15. The NSO formally recognizes the fundamental role and importance of certified coaches through their involvement in athlete development programs and in the technical direction of national team programs.
A16. The NSO has a formal policy on harassment and abuse, including procedures for the reporting and for the investigation of complaints. (Annex A16)
NSOs not funded in 2003-2004 must submit copy of their policy and procedures on Harassment and Abuse.
A17. The NSO has an internal Appeal process consistent with established principles of due process and natural justice and containing a provision that allows disputes to be referred to the alternate dispute resolution services of the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada.

Section B: National Scope Criteria

National Sport Organizations that are national in scope, according to the criteria outlined below, have a significant number of active members and affiliated constituents across Canada. NSOs are actively engaged with their Provincial/Territorial constituents in aligning and harmonizing their strategic plans, programs and activities based on their Long Term Participant/Athlete Development Model to provide a technically and ethically sound and safe sport experience for more Canadians.

B1. The NSO has a minimum of 3,000 registered members. (Annex B1)
A member is an individual athlete competitor, coach, official, or team, who is registered with the NSO directly, or with a Provincial or Territorial or Divisional sport organization affiliated to the NSO. Such membership must be associated with the payment of a fee, either directly to the NSO or through an affiliated provincial, territorial or divisional sport organization, or through a member club. Membership information must be verifiable from the organization's records and database. If teams are affiliated as members, a standard team-size will be used for each team sport. NSOs not funded by Sport Canada in 2003-2004 must fill out the attached membership report.
B2. The NSO has a minimum of eight affiliated Provincial or Territorial Sport Organizations (P/TSOs). (Annex B2)
Non-funded NSOs must include official list of Provincial/Territorial Associations or Sections or Divisions, with addresses, board members, website address, copies of most recent annual reports or any other relevant information substantiating the existence of activity in each province or territory. NSOs that have Sections or Divisions that may comprise two or more provinces or territories must be able to demonstrate an equivalent level of activity in the requisite number of eight provinces and/or territories.
B3. The NSO has a National Championship in which a minimum of six P/TSOs compete regularly in at least one category. (Annex B3)
The NSO has a National Championship in which a minimum of six¹ Provincial/Territorial Organizations compete regularly² in at least one category.³
¹ Including qualification events if the field at Nationals is restricted to fewer than six P/TSOs.
² In at least three of the past four years.
³ In at least one category or age group or stream.
Sport Canada will allow for special circumstances that may affect participation in a given year (e.g. bad weather, travel cost, etc.) and will consider as a substitute year either the championships from five years ago or the upcoming (e.g. 2004-2005) championships as a replacement.