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Sport Integrity Framework

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Introduction

The Government of Canada is committed to ensuring that everyone in Canada can participate and flourish in a sport system that is fair, safe, and inclusive. This requires that threats to sport integrity, such as cheating and maltreatment, are prevented and addressed.

These threats exist at every level of sport. They limit the good that sport can do to build strong communities and improve individual well-being. Threats to sport integrity also undermine the confidence of Canadians in the sport system itself, which can lead to lower participation rates.

Historically, the approach taken to address sport integrity issues in Canada has been reactive and fragmented. This has led to gaps in policy, research, and programming.

It has also led to calls for a more coordinated and proactive approach to sport integrity in Canada, and for the Government of Canada to play a more active leadership role in sport integrity both within Canada and internationally.

Purpose of the Framework

The purpose of the Sport Integrity Framework is to:

Role of the Government of Canada in Sport Integrity

The Government of Canada’s active involvement in sport integrity issues began in the 1980s through extensive and internationally recognized leadership on the issue of doping in sport. This led to the creation of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), located in Montreal, in which Canada continues to play a strong leadership role to this day.

Since then, the Government of Canada has been actively involved at the national and international levels in sport integrity issues, including doping, concussions, maltreatment, cheating, discrimination, governance, corruption, competition manipulation, and sports betting.

The Government of Canada has several means to address sport integrity. These include:

The Government of Canada also collaborates with numerous partners and stakeholders, including:

Within the federal/provincial/territorial context, the Ministers responsible for Sport, Physical Activity and Recreation collaborate on shared priorities, which include sport integrity issues such as doping, violence prevention, concussion, and maltreatment in sport. These priorities are reflected in the Canadian Sport Policy and Priorities for Collaborative Action.

The Government of Canada is also involved on the international stage. In addition to its involvement with WADA, the Government of Canada participates in international fora, such as the Commonwealth Advisory Body on Sport, the Council of Europe, the International Partnership Against Corruption in Sport (IPACS), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the American Sports Council (Consejo Americano del Deporte or CADE).

The Government of Canada has also established an International Ministerial Workgroup on Integrity in Sport. At a first meeting in July 2024, like-minded partners including the UK, USA, France, Australia, New Zealand and Jamaica agreed that there is value to furthering this effort and committed to share experiences, resources, international best practices and lessons learned. The group intends to meet twice annually.

In May 2024, the Government of Canada launched the Future of Sport in Canada Commission. This eighteen-month independent Commission is engaging the Canadian sport sector to develop recommendations on improvements to the Canadian sport system, recognizing that integrity and safety threats exist in every aspect of sport.

Threats to the Integrity of the Person, the Game, and the System

Sport integrity issues impact individuals and the field of play, as well as sport organizations and the broader sport system.

Understanding sport integrity threats as threats to the person, the game, and the system recognizes the complexity and multi-faceted nature of sport integrity issues. It also provides a helpful framework for action by recognizing the interplay of these contexts.

The integrity of the PERSON is threatened when human rights are not respected; when individuals are not included and made to feel unwelcome; and when individuals are not safe.

The integrity of the GAME is threatened when the rules in and around the field of play are not fair or followed; and when the field of play itself is unsafe.

The integrity of the SYSTEM is threatened when organizations are not properly governed and held accountable; when individual behaviour that threatens to undermine the entire system is not identified or addressed; and when system-wide policies and procedures promoting inclusion, fairness, and access are lacking.

Sport Integrity Issues

Each of the following issues threatens the integrity of sport in Canada and around the world.

Doping

Doping is a serious threat to the integrity of clean and fair sport worldwide. Canada is a leader in the global anti-doping movement. Canada has been the host of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Headquarters in Montréal since 2001.

Canada signed and ratified the Council of Europe Anti-Doping Convention in 1996 and has been a State party of the UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport since 2005. The federal government has leadership responsibilities to advance the priorities of these international conventions, which also provide a framework for domestic anti-doping. At the national level, the federal government remains actively engaged in anti-doping through the Canadian Policy against Doping in Sport.

To prevent and detect doping in the sport system, the Government of Canada provides funding to the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) to implement the Canadian Anti-Doping Program. This includes an education, prevention, detection (testing and investigations), and deterrence. It also includes research.

The Government of Canada also funds the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada (SDRCC) to rule on doping-related disputes.

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Maltreatment

Maltreatment is unacceptable and incompatible with the core values of sport. The Government of Canada has worked in consultation with experts and athletes to promote safe, welcoming, and inclusive environments for all sport participants, free from maltreatment, including harassment, abuse, and discrimination.

In 2019, federal, provincial, and territorial governments endorsed the Red Deer Declaration for the Prevention of Harassment, Abuse, and Discrimination in Sport and committed to work together to foster a collaborative and coordinated relationship with sport organizations, participants, and stakeholders, and engage relevant experts to identify effective approaches to prevent and respond to incidents of harassment, abuse, and discrimination. Governments also committed to implementing a collaborative intergovernmental approach, with better harmonized commitments, mechanisms, principles, and actions to address harassment, abuse, and discrimination in sport in the areas of awareness, policy, prevention, reporting, management, and monitoring.

With funding from the Government of Canada, the CCES led the development of the Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport (UCCMS) in consultation with stakeholders in the sport community and in collaboration with an expert working group. It sets harmonized rules and common principles to be adopted by sport organizations that receive funding from the Government of Canada to advance a respectful sport culture that delivers inclusive and safe sport experiences. This code provides the Canadian sport community with a foundational tool for preventing and responding to maltreatment in sport.

In June 2022, the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada (SDRCC) launched the Abuse-Free Sport Program, which includes the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC) to administer the UCCMS. As Canada’s independent third-party mechanism, the OSIC receives and manages allegations of maltreatment in sport. It receives reports about violations of the UCCMS and initiates scoping for Sport Environment Assessments. In addition, the Abuse-Free Sport Program offers education, prevention tools and resources, including mental health and legal aid referrals to assist in the detection, awareness, and management of maltreatment.

The Government of Canada has also provided funding to federally funded organizations to implement initiatives in the areas of policy development and training to address maltreatment in sport.

Since July 1, 2023, all federally funded NSOs, MSOs and Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Centres and Institutes have been required to be Program Signatories to the Abuse-Free Sport Program to receive funding.

In May 2024, the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity announced that responsibility for the administration of the UCCMS will transfer from the SDRCC to the CCES, effective April 1, 2025.

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Competition Manipulation

Competition manipulation contributes to unsafe sport environments at all levels.

Federally funded sport organizations can be subject to rules and regulations from their international federations on the issue of competition manipulation, especially as it is related to the Olympic Movement Code on the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions which is an integral part of the Olympic Charter and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Code of Ethics.

All sport organizations, including National Olympic Committees, International Sports Federations and their respective members at the continental, regional and national levels, as well as IOC-recognized organizations bound by the Olympic Charter, must implement this Code by referencing it or by implementing regulations in line with it.

The Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) has demonstrated leadership in the sport system on this topic developing a competition manipulation policy template for sport organizations, hosting two symposiums on the topic, and drafting a discussion paper on the threat competition manipulation poses to Canadian sport integrity.

International bodies have undertaken multiple initiatives to address this issue, such as the Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions (the Macolin Convention) and the Olympic Movement Code on the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions. Canada is engaging with international bodies on how it can be more involved in the prevention of competition manipulation.

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Fair Play

Cheating undermines and threatens the integrity of sport. The Government of Canada is committed to advancing education and prevention strategies that ensure that all Canadians can participate and compete on a fair playing field.

The Government of Canada funds the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport to promote values-based sport, which includes a commitment to fairness, excellence, inclusion, and fun through its approach to sport integrity education and prevention. These shared, positive values are necessary to realize sport’s true potential to build communities, stimulate economies, and contribute to the overall well-being of Canadians and Canada as a whole.

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Discrimination

The presence of discrimination in sport undermines human rights and the integrity of sport in its ability to serve as a powerful tool for individual growth.

To address discrimination in sport, the UCCMS includes discrimination as one of the forms of maltreatment and a prohibited behaviour.

In addition, the Government of Canada is working to identify systemic barriers and gaps, consider changes to policies and programs, and support initiatives to prevent discrimination and protect human rights in Canadian sport.

The Government of Canada has funded several initiatives designed to prevent discrimination and make sport more inclusive and accessible for equity-deserving populations. These populations include, but are not limited to, girls and women; persons with disabilities; Indigenous peoples; people from Black, racialized, and religious minority communities; 2SLGBTQI+ populations; official language minority communities; and newcomers to Canada.

These initiatives include supporting equity, diversity and inclusion in the sport system through the Gender Equity and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion program; supporting Indigenous peoples’ access to meaningful and culturally appropriate sport activities in their communities through the Sport for Social Development in Indigenous Communities program; and funding to make sport more accessible for all equity-deserving populations through the Community Sport for All Initiative.

The Government of Canada is also engaged in addressing issues related to the participation of persons with disabilities in sport, including developing policy and working with funding recipients and stakeholders to reduce barriers and prevent discrimination.

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Concussions

Concussions in sport and recreation are a serious threat to the health and safety of participants. The Government of Canada supports the development of awareness, monitoring, and prevention resources for concussions so that Canadians, including athletes, coaches, parents, teachers, health care providers and school and sport staff, have access to the most up-to-date resources and know how to use them to prevent, recognize, and manage concussions.

To increase awareness of concussions, the Government of Canada has provided funding to the Sport Information Resource Centre (SIRC) to launch a national awareness campaign, to disseminate information online, and lead events and workshops.

To prevent concussions in sport, the Government of Canada has provided support to NSOs and targeted MSOs, specifically in the areas of rules of the game, training methods, and behaviors.

Funded by the Government of Canada, Parachute has developed the Canadian Guideline on Concussion in Sport to ensure that athletes with a suspected concussion receive timely and appropriate care, and proper management to allow them to return to their sport. A first edition was released in July 2017, and an updated second edition was released in March 2024. This was built upon by Canada’s high performance sport community in its National Concussion Strategy for high-performance athletes and para-athletes, released in 2019.

To assist in the management of concussions, the federal government has provided funding to NSOs and targeted MSOs to develop a policy that includes sport-specific protocols harmonized with the latest Canadian Guideline on Concussion in Sport. Federally funded organizations are required to have a concussion policy and return-to-sport protocol in place as a condition of that funding.

To support the surveillance of concussions, Sport Canada is an advisory member of the SHRED Concussion program (Surveillance in High Schools to Reduce the Risk of Concussions and their Consequences). It provides a national platform for concussion surveillance in high schools to evaluate solutions for concussion prevention that has significant impact in reducing the risk of sport-related concussions and their consequences in youth. Sport Canada is also the co-chair of the Advisory Committee of the Canadian Concussion Network dedicated to research.

The Government of Canada has been working closely with provinces and territories through a Harmonized Approach on Concussions in Sport endorsed by all jurisdictions. Sport Canada has been the co-chair of the Federal/Provincial-Territorial Working Group on Concussions in Sport since 2015.

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Governance

Good governance practices are necessary for healthy, safe, and inclusive sport environments. Governance is central to the Government of Canada’s High Performance Strategy action plan, recognizing that organizations should adhere to transparent governance and best business practices to develop and protect the integrity of the sport system.

The Canadian Sport Governance Code was developed by the Canadian Olympic Committee. It embodies industry-standard governance principles and best practices for fostering transparency, integrity, accountability, and efficiency within the Canadian sport system.

As an element of a modernizing its approach to funding, the Government of Canada will integrate good governance principles into existing accountability mechanisms for federally funded organizations. Instead of requiring organizations to sign on to a standalone Governance Code, the new funding model will contain mandatory governance elements. The Governance Code remains a resource of established best practices in sport organization governance.

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Corruption

Corruption in any form constitutes a serious threat to the integrity of sport.

The Government of Canada is an active participant in international working groups on corruption in sport, such as the International Partnership Against Corruption in Sport (IPACS). Within these working groups, the Government of Canada works to raise awareness of potential areas for corruption and to prevent the occurrence of corruption in international sporting events and international sports organizations.

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Sports Betting

Sports betting and related illegal activities pose a real risk to Canadians, including athletes, and can erode public confidence in the integrity of sport.

Since the decriminalization of single-game sports betting in the United States in 2018 and Canada in 2021, there has been a significant increase in the number of Canadians betting on sport, as well as an increase in the ways in which they can gamble through online betting platforms.

The Government of Canada is engaged in identifying and addressing issues related to sports betting in Canada, including examining policy approaches, working with funding recipients and stakeholders, and collaborating with provincial and territorial partners on this important issue.

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Foundational Reference Documents

The following policies and reference documents have shaped the Government of Canada’s work in sport integrity:

UNESCO Kazan Action Plan

The Kazan Action Plan was developed as a tool by the United Nations for aligning international and national policy in the fields of physical education, physical activity, and sport with the United Nations 2030 Agenda. Action 3 of the plan focuses on protecting the integrity of sport.

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Council of Europe Guidelines on Sport Integrity

The Guidelines on Sport Integrity was developed by the Council of Europe to align within the framework of the Kazan Action Plan to serve as a point of reference for Government Ministries responsible for sport as they address sport integrity issues. The objective of these guidelines is to preserve the integrity of sports competitions, of people and of sports organizations though a single holistic approach to the integrity of sport.

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Sustainable Development Goals

The sustainable development goals (SDGs) were created by the United Nations to be a global call to action to address today's most pressing social, economic and environmental challenges.

The UN 2030 Agenda recognizes sport as an important enabler of sustainable development, both nationally and internationally, and the SDGs have a substantial focus on issues of governance and integrity. These underpinning principles at the highest level of global policymaking reinforce the importance of coherence between sport integrity, sport and human rights and the contribution of sport to the SDGs when ensuring sport integrity within the Canadian sport system.

All federal departments and agencies are responsible for integrating the 2030 Agenda into their work and for advancing the SDGs within their areas of responsibility.

The Government of Canada’s investments in promoting and protecting the integrity of sport contribute to meeting the Government of Canada’s commitments to advancing the goals, in particular Goal 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing), Goal 5 (Gender Equality), Goal 10 (Reduced Inequalities), and Goal 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions).

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Human Rights

The protection of human rights in sport is an integral component of ensuring sport integrity. Canada is a signatory to several international agreements that require member states to bring a rights-based perspective to sport, physical education, and physical activity, and to provide protections to designated populations, including children and women. Canada became a member of the Centre for Sport and Human Rights Advisory Council in 2024.

The Government of Canada supports the Canadian sport system in continuing to work towards ensuring the objectives of these international agreements related to sport are met and further develop and incorporate them into future policies and initiatives.

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Canadian Sport Policy

The common thread between the governments, institutions and organizations that are part of our sport system is the Canadian Sport Policy. The current Canadian Sport Policy sets a direction for all governments, institutions, and organizations to make sure sport has a positive impact on the lives of Canadians, our communities, and our country.

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