OTTAWA (ON) – Squash Canada is pleased to formally announce that it has secured $40,000 in funding from Sport Canada for the Pan Am Games 2015 preparations. The funding was made available after consultation took place between Pan Am Only Sports and the Canadian Olympic Committee to secure Canada’s best finish for the 2015 Pan Am Games. At this time, this initiative is only available until the 2015 Pan Am Games.
OTTAWA (ON) – Squash Canada is pleased to formally announce that it has secured $40,000 in funding from Sport Canada for the Pan Am Games 2015 preparations. The funding was made available after consultation took place between Pan Am Only Sports and the Canadian Olympic Committee to secure Canada’s best finish for the 2015 Pan Am Games. At this time, this initiative is only available until the 2015 Pan Am Games.
Once the Government of Canada decided on providing targeted funding to Pan-Am only sports which had enhanced medal opportunities, an analysis took place by Own-the-Podium (OTP) to determine funding levels and approve targeted projects/opportunities. The approved targeted funding will support three areas for Squash Canada:
1. International Exposure Opportunities to enhance Squash Canada’s medal count at the Pan Am Games.
2. Domestic & Games Preparations (training camps, HP services etc)
3. International Competitions for medal contenders in 2015 – i.e., British Open, World Open,
“We are very excited to receive this additional funding to support our High Performance Squad athletes in preparation of the Pan Am Games in Toronto, this funding will be beneficial to our athletes and will serve to provide enhanced training opportunities to improve our medal chances at the games”, said Squash Canada Executive Director, Danny Da Costa.
The funding is eligible to current High Performance Senior Squad Athletes and is targeted for specific enhanced training opportunities as approved by Sport Canada, OTP and Squash Canada’s High Performance Committee. The amount of funding available to the athletes has been divided as follows for the 2013 – 2014 fiscal:
· $7,500 – Exposure Opportunities ($3,000 is targeted to Canada’s #1 male / female players and $4,500 is targeted to the remaining eligible HP squad members).
· $4,000 – Domestic Team Preparations/Camp (further details on the Pan American team camp will be made available in the next few weeks).
The criteria used by HPC to select the nominated/targeted athletes include:
· Must be a current member of Squash Canada High Performance Squad
· Must be Pan Am Games eligible
· Must be considered an athlete who would most benefit from the exposure opportunity. An athlete with significant room for development
· Must be considered ‘in the mix’ for the Pan Am Games
· Must be seen to be working hard and improving
· Must show measurable performance; winning PSA and other matches and match length when defeated
· Top 8 in the Canadian rankings
· Most recent world team trials will be considered
· Most recent Canadian Nationals will be considered
· PSA/WSA 90 (in line with HP squad policy)
The allotment of funding will be communicated directly to those ‘targeted’ athletes who are considered to have medal potential in 2015. Selected athletes will consult and devise a training plan with their personal coach and Squash Canada’s Performance Director. Once the plan is approved by the Squash Canada’s Performance Director the allocation of the funds will be distributed to the athlete.
Additional funds will be made available in the 2014 – 2015 fiscal for similar training opportunities.
