Athletes

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From swimming to track, volleyball and badminton, several former Varsity Blues athletes will head to the Games alongside key staff members

Five former Blues athletes have qualified to represent Canada at the upcoming 2024 Olympic Games this summer – and will be joined in host city Paris by several University of Toronto staff and community members.

Four-time Olympic medalist Kylie Masse has been named a co-captain of the Canadian swimming team at the Games, which take place July 26 to Aug. 11, while former Blues badminton star Michelle Li is set to make her fourth Olympic appearance and beach volleyball player Heather Bansley qualified for her third straight Summer Games.

Track and field alumnae Jazz Shukla and Lucia Stafford are off to their first and second Games, respectively.

Meanwhile, at the Paralympic Games, which take place Aug. 28 to Sept. 8., former Varsity Blues rower Alina Dumas is set to represent Brazil as coxswain of its PR3 coxed four crew.

The athletes will be joined in Paris by several �Թϱ�� staff members and alumni.

Byron MacDonald, who enters his 47th season as Varsity Blues swimming head coach this September, heads to his 10th Olympic Games as a broadcaster, while assistant head coach Linda Kiefer heads to her sixth Olympic Games as a swimming coach. Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education (KPE) alumnus and �Թϱ�� staff member Ron Castro was also named a massage therapist to the Canadian swimming team.

Former Varsity Blues volleyball player and head coach Ed Drakich is set for his fifth Olympic Games as a volleyball technical official. He also represented Canada as an athlete in 1996.

Jane Thornton, Team Canada’s chief medical officer, earned her Doctor of Medicine from �Թϱ��’s Temerty Faculty of Medicine in 2014.

Here’s a brief snapshot of the �Թϱ�� community members who will be representing Canada as the Games get underway later this week:

Kylie Masse reacts after competing in the final of the women's 200m backstroke at the Canada Olympic & Paralympic Swimming Trials at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre on May 16, 2024 (Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Kylie Masse – Swimming

A member of the Varsity Blues swimming team from 2014-2019, Masse has already put together a lengthy career full of highlights ahead of a third Olympic appearance.

She claimed her first Olympic medal at the 2016 Rio Games, earning bronze in the 100-metre backstroke. She then set a new world record while winning the 100-metre backstroke at the 2017 FINA World Championships in Budapest.

Masse would go on to defend her 100-metre backstroke world championship at the 2019 FINA World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, propelling her to a three-medal performance at the 2020 Tokyo Games, where she took silver in both the 100-metre and 200-metre backstroke events, and added a bronze as part of Canada’s 4x100m medley relay.

During her time with the Varsity Blues, Masse went undefeated at five consecutive Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championships without losing an individual or relay race. The five-time OUA female swimmer of the year, five-time OUA first team all-star and the 2015 OUA female rookie of the year also twice won the Dr. Jeno Tihanyi award for individual medley excellence and earned major grand slams in all three backstroke events.

Michelle Li poses during the medal presentation ceremony for the women's singles gold medal badminton match during the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England (Photo by Ben Stansall/AFP/Getty Images)

Michelle Li – Badminton

Competing with the Varsity Blues badminton team during both the 2009-2010 and 2012-2013 seasons, Li is appearing at her fourth Olympic Games.

She made her Olympic debut at the 2012 London Games, competing in both the women’s singles and doubles events, earning an impressive fourth place result with her partner Alexandra Bruce. She then went on to qualify for both the 2016 Rio Games and 2020 Tokyo Games in the women’s singles, achieving a top 10 finish at the latter.

Among the most successful Canadian female badminton players ever, Li is a six-time Pan American Championships singles gold medalist and the first Canadian woman to win singles gold at the Commonwealth Games.

At �Թϱ��, Li helped the Varsity Blues to their first OUA championship title in 10 years, earning OUA female MVP and OUA all-star honours during the 2012-13 campaign. In that season she won both the OUA and Canadian university women’s singles titles, while partnering with Grace Gao to win the women’s doubles titles.

(L-R) Gold medalists Heather Bansley and Sophie Bukovec of Team Canada pose for photos after the women's final match of the NORCECA Olympic Beach Volleyball Qualification Tournament (photo by Essene Hernandez/Eyepix Group/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Heather Bansley – Beach Volleyball

A former Varsity Blues student-athlete between 2005-2010 and assistant coach during the 2021-22 season, Bansley is now getting set to head to her third Olympic Games as a member of Team Canada.

Considered among the best defensive players in the world, she previously competed at the 2020 Tokyo Games and the 2016 Rio Games with partner Brandie Wilkerson, placing fifth overall at both international showcases. Bansley has been a dominant player throughout her career on the FIVB beach volleyball world tour, winning the world's best defender honour three times (2018, 2016 and 2015). In 2018, she and Wilkerson reached the No. 1 ranking in the world.

While a student-athlete at �Թϱ��, Bansley was a two-time all-Canadian who finished first on the OUA and U SPORTS leader board in points, kills and serving aces per set during the 2009-2010 season. She helped lead the Blues to a provincial title and a spot in the U SPORTS national championship.

Lucia Stafford reacts during the women's 1500m heats at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, Aug. 2, 2021 (photo by Li Yibo/Xinhua via Getty Images)

Lucia Stafford – Track and Field

An alumna of the Varsity Blues track and field and cross country teams between 2016-2020, Stafford will be heading to her second Olympic Games after winning her third Canadian women’s 1500-metre title. A semifinalist at the 2020 Tokyo Games, Stafford recently set a new Canadian record in the women’s 2000-metre in her Diamond League debut, breaking the previous mark set 30 years ago by Angela Chalmers.

While with the Blues, Stafford was named both �Թϱ��’s T-Holders’ female athlete of the year and the OUA female athlete of the year across all sports in her senior season. She earned individual OUA and U SPORTS gold medals, an OUA silver with the women’s cross country team, nine provincial medals and 10 national medals with the track and field team across her four seasons of competition.

Jazz Shukla prepares for the start of the women's 800m semi-final heat three during the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary on Aug. 25, 2023 (photo by Li Yibo/Xinhua via Getty Images)

Jazz Shukla – Track and Field

A Varsity Blues track and field and cross country athlete between 2016 and 2022, Shukla qualified for her first Olympic Games after winning the Canadian women’s 800-metre title. After a steady ascent up the rankings since graduating from �Թϱ��, her 1:58.20 time at the Canadian Olympic trials marked the second fastest trials time in North America.

Since jumping back into competition in the 800-metre event in 2022, Shukla has continued to improve her time with each outing. She most recently competed at the 2023 Canadian National Championships, 2023 World Championships and 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships.

Shukla’s time at �Թϱ�� coincided with impressive results and recognition. With the cross country team, she earned U SPORTS first team all-Canadian and OUA first team all-star honours in 2021.

With PhD in hand, �Թϱ�� grad and former Olympian aims to tackle athlete abuse

Christopher.Sorensen — Wed, 05 Jun 2024 16:28:49 +0000

With PhD in hand, �Թϱ�� grad and former Olympian aims to tackle athlete abuse

Christopher.Sorensen Wed, 06/05/2024 - 12:28

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Erin Willson, who competed in the 2012 Olympic Games with Team Canada, is graduating with a PhD from the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education (photo by Hannah Kiviranta)

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Erin Willson, a former synchronized swimmer with Team Canada, researched positive coaching styles for her doctoral dissertation

Erin Willson was a synchronized swimmer for 14 years – half of which were spent as a member of Team Canada, including competing in the 2012 Olympic Games.

Yet, despite her triumphs, Willson's long career at the pinnacle of her sport also caused her to realize just how many athletes experienced emotional abuse, and how little awareness there was around the issue.

“There was some conversation about sexual abuse, but notably, experiences of body shaming and emotional abuse were missing,” says Willson, who is graduating with a PhD from the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education (KPE) this spring.

“This was important to me because I had known from my experience – and the experiences of other athletes that I had spoken with – that emotional abuse can have a lot of really negative effects, but these were being ignored or dismissed as ‘part of sport.’”

When Willson began weighing up options for graduate school, she was drawn to KPE due to the research being done by Professor Gretchen Kerr and Associate Professor Ashley Stirling – dean and vice-dean, respectively – on emotional abuse and body image issues in sport.

Willson says few people were talking about abuse in sport at the time, and the work of Kerr and Stirling resonated with her due to her own experiences. She decided she wanted to contribute to increasing our understanding of athlete abuse as well as shed light on positive coaching approaches.

“As cliché as it sounds, I knew I couldn't change my own experience, but hoped I could change the experiences of future generations so that other athletes would not have to go through what I did to reach their goals,” says Willson.

Her doctoral research took a positive approach to addressing maltreatment in sport. While increased attention to the issue has led to the implementation of codes of conduct and new mechanisms for reporting and investigating abuse, Willson identified an important gap in research and practice.

“Something that’s been missing is teaching coaches and sport organizations what to do instead of focusing on what not to do,” says Willson. “A common reason we've heard from coaches who are hesitant to adopt more positive coaching methods is that they don't elicit performance results like abusive tactics do.”

For her dissertation, Willson interviewed Olympic and Paralympic medalists and their coaches who had a positive sport experience to provide evidence that positive coaching styles elicit performance and to outline what positive coaching can look like.

She says the biggest challenge she faced was the intensity of the subject matter she was studying. “I felt this especially when my personal story of what I had experienced as an athlete became public,” says Willson, noting she was “really lucky” to have the support of friends, family and her supervisor.

Willson said she also received plenty of support for her advocacy. For the past three years, she has been the president of AthletesCAN, and has advocated for athletes on issues like safe sport, representation and funding. “While I have been very fortunate to be able to pursue multiple passions at once, at times, it was difficult to balance both interests,” says Willson. “I was very fortunate to have the support of my supervisor and the faculty of KPE, who supported and celebrated the work that I was doing in both areas.”

Her research-to-practice approach was also encouraged through a Connaught PhDs for Public Impact Fellowship, which supports public scholarship. With the help of the fellowship, Willson travelled to several international conferences and completed a month-long seminar at the International Olympic Academy in Olympia, Greece – the birthplace of the ancient Olympic Games.

Willson is conducting post-doctoral research with Kerr in KPE’s Safe Sport lab, where she’s working with the Coaching Association of Canada to translate her dissertation data into a practical toolkit for coaches. This summer, she started teaching an undergraduate course on maltreatment in youth sport.

“It’s an exciting time for women's sports in Canada, which aligns with my research interests of gender-based violence and gender-equity as a solution to violence, so I can see myself being involved in this, either through research, practice or a combination of the two in the near future,” says Willson.

Reflecting on her time thus far at KPE, Willson credits her supervisor Kerr and committee members Stirling and Professor Emeritus Bruce Kidd for creating a nurturing and supportive learning environment.

Her biggest piece of advice for students interested in following in her footsteps? Pursue your passion.

“Graduate school can be really difficult, but if you're passionate about what you're doing, it makes it so much easier,” she says. “Even on the hardest days, I always woke up feeling so grateful that I got to do something that I loved.”

Gene that affects iron metabolism linked to improved performance in athletes, �Թϱ�� study finds

Christopher.Sorensen — Wed, 24 Mar 2021 14:32:17 +0000

Gene that affects iron metabolism linked to improved performance in athletes, �Թϱ�� study finds

Christopher.Sorensen Wed, 03/24/2021 - 10:32

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Researchers studied 100 athletes from a variety of sports and found that athletes genetically at risk for iron overload, but with iron stores below potentially toxic levels, could have a competitive edge (photo by South Agency via Getty Images)

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A genetic variation that regulates iron metabolism may enhance athletes’ endurance performance, researchers at the University of Toronto have found.

The findings could help explain studies that show an association between the genetic variation and elite athletes across many sports, and may help competitive athletes fine-tune their iron intake to boost performance.

The variation, found in the homeostatic iron regulator (HFE) gene, is a known cause of iron overload – a condition called hemochromatosis in which the body absorbs too much iron leading to organ and joint damage.

Athletes at risk for hemochromatosis but with iron stores below potentially toxic levels could have a competitive edge. Yet, most athletes are unsure if boosting their intake of iron from supplements or diet is likely to be beneficial or harmful.

“Increasing iron intake might not be ideal for athletes who already have the elevated risk genotype, but athletes with the low-risk genotypes could potentially benefit from increasing their iron stores,” said Ahmed El-Sohemy, a professor of nutritional sciences in �Թϱ��’s Temerty Faculty of Medicine.

“Genetic testing and supervision by a health-care professional to monitor iron status could be an effective way for athletes to optimize endurance performance.”

The researchers’ findings were recently published online in Medicine & Science in Sport & Exercise and will appear in the journal’s July 2021 print issue. The study is the first to look at the association between HFE genotype and endurance performance in competitive male athletes.

El-Sohemy and his colleagues studied 100 athletes from a variety of sports, tracking how quickly they cycled 10 kilometers while measuring their aerobic capacity through VO2 peak, a measure of oxygen used during exercise.

The researchers found that those genetically at risk for iron overload performed eight per cent better than those with a low risk, cycling 1.3 minutes faster on average. They also showed that athletes with higher risk for iron overload had a 17 per cent greater oxygen carrying capacity, which could explain why they cycled faster.

The higher-risk group was small (11 males), but the findings are consistent with studies on iron in endurance performance, which show that iron facilitates oxygen transport and that athletes with levels on the higher end of normal can circulate oxygen in their muscles more efficiently.

Athletes with the elevated genetic risk variation may be less likely to feel fatigued and more likely to recover quicker after high-intensity exercise, El-Sohemy said.

Nanci Guest is a post-doctoral researcher at �Թϱ�� and sport dietitian who conducted the trial. She said she hopes the study raises awareness about the importance of genetics in optimizing nutritional status among athletes, trainers and their coaches.

“Despite our vigilance toward addressing low-iron status, these findings suggest that we may need to direct our attention to achieving optimal iron status by aiming toward mid- or higher ends of normal,” Guest said.

El-Sohemy and his colleagues are now looking at whether iron status is associated with other measures of athletic performance such as power and strength. They plan to examine whether HFE and additional genes could be important, and they hope to broaden the work further to include females and recreational athletes.

Drishti Thakkar is a graduate student in the Faculty of Information at �Թϱ�� who analyzed the trial data and compiled the results as part of an undergraduate project in nutritional sciences. “I’m excited to see more athletes consider genetic testing to obtain precise information for more personalized nutrition and training regimens,” said Thakkar. “I think this is definitely part of the future in sports nutrition.”

The research was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Canadian Foundation for Dietetic Research, Nutrigenomix, the Coca Cola Company and Mitacs. El-Sohemy is the founder and chief science officer of Nutrigenomix and Guest is on the company’s scientific advisory board. Nutrigenomix provides genetic testing for personalized nutrition including the HFE gene and iron metabolism.

Training on a low-carb diet boosts protein needs for endurance athletes: �Թϱ�� researchers

Christopher.Sorensen — Fri, 24 Jan 2020 16:25:40 +0000

Training on a low-carb diet boosts protein needs for endurance athletes: �Թϱ�� researchers

Christopher.Sorensen Fri, 01/24/2020 - 11:25

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(photo by Brian Erickson via Unsplash)

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Endurance training while consuming a diet low in carbohydrates has garnered much interest lately. But is this the right approach for everyone and how does it impact protein requirements and performance?

Assistant Professor Jenna Gillen and Associate Professor Daniel Moore of the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education (KPE) recently wrote an article for the Sports Medicine Bulletin of the American College of Sports Medicine in which they discussed the findings of their recent research study, published in the November 2019 issue of the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, that investigated the relationship between training on a low-carb diet and the dietary protein requirements of endurance athletes.

KPE writer Jelena Damjanovic recently sat down with Gillen and Moore to find out more about their research and what it means for training regimens.

Jenna Gillen (left) and Daniel Moore (right) are both researchers in �Թϱ��’s Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education (photos courtesy of KPE)

How would you define a low-carb/high-fat diet vs. a high-carb/low-fat diet?

Gillen: A high-carb/low-fat diet typically involves consuming 50 to 65 per cent or more of daily calorie intake as carbohydrates and 20 to 35 per cent as fat. Alternatively, a low-carb/high-fat diet consists of less than 25 per cent of your daily calorie needs from carbohydrates and greater than 60 per cent coming from fat. Protein intake isn’t specifically increased or decreased with either approach, and is generally similar with both dietary strategies.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of following a low-carb/high-fat diet for endurance athletes? How does it influence performance?

Gillen: The rationale for athletes following a low-carb/high-fat diet is that it can increase our muscles’ ability to use fat as an energy source during exercise, which is a fuel source that we have an abundant supply of compared to our more limited reserves of carbohydrate. However, this adaptation comes at a cost as there is also a decrease in muscles’ ability to use carbohydrates during exercise. From a performance standpoint, this isn’t optimal because carbohydrates are a more efficient energy source than fat – they produce more energy per litre of oxygen consumed – and we rely almost exclusively on carbohydrate to support high-intensity exercise. As a result, eating a low-carb/high-fat diet can actually compromise an athlete’s overall performance and ability to perform high-intensity exercise during a race or sporting event.

Are there other ways that carbohydrate availability can be manipulated to improve endurance performance?

Gillen: Instead of following a low-carb/high-fat diet, athletes may choose to perform some of their endurance training sessions under conditions of low-carbohydrate availability. With this approach, athletes still consume high amounts of carbohydrate daily, for example 50 to 65 per cent of energy needs, or six to 10 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram body weight, but perform select training sessions at times when liver and muscle carbohydrate stores (glycogen) are lower. Examples would be performing exercise following an overnight fast and/or in close proximity to an earlier high-intensity exercise session. This type of “carbohydrate periodization” throughout training has been shown to increase energy-producing mitochondria in muscle and improve endurance performance.

What are the current recommendations for daily carbs, fat and protein intake among endurance athletes?

Moore: Recommended carbohydrates vary depending on the volume of training an athlete is doing. However, if they want to make sure their training is high quality, which would be fueled by carbohydrates because they are a “faster,” more efficient energy source, then they’d likely be in the range of six to 10 g/kg/d. We speculate that protein requirements scale with training volume, but if they’re running more than 50 kilometres per week, that requirement would be around 1.6 to 1.8 g/kg/d and perhaps more with higher volumes. However, provided they are meeting their energy requirements, most endurance athletes consume sufficient protein. Fat generally just makes up the balance of the energy unless athletes are specifically eating low-carbohydrate diets. This is not suggested if their goal is to train or compete as fast as they can, as fat can’t provide energy as “quickly” as carbohydrates.

Does following a low-carb diet increase dietary protein requirements of endurance athletes? How much more?

Moore: Our research would suggest requirements may indeed be elevated, at least during the initial adaptation to a low-carb diet. This is because amino acids provide a greater percentage of energy when exercise is performed with low-carbohydrate availability, such as before a meal and with low muscle and liver glycogen (the body’s carbohydrate stores). However, as mentioned, this is not recommended if their goal is to train or compete at a high intensity or perform a personal best. As for how much more protein is required, research has not addressed this question yet. Our study did suggest that just periodizing carbohydrate intake so that exercise is performed with low liver or muscle glycogen may increase protein requirements by about 10 per cent with only a “short” 10-kilometre run.

Why is it important to make that adjustment in protein intake (if on a low carb diet) and how best to do it?

Moore: It is important to increase your protein intake if you are training with low-carbohydrate availability as the extra amino acids that are used as energy must be replaced through the diet. This can be accomplished by modestly increasing the protein content of your post-workout meal or including an extra protein-containing snack throughout the day.

Too harsh or not harsh enough? �Թϱ�� researcher unpacks World Anti-Doping Agency's Russia ban

Christopher.Sorensen — Tue, 10 Dec 2019 20:28:28 +0000

Too harsh or not harsh enough? �Թϱ�� researcher unpacks World Anti-Doping Agency's Russia ban

Christopher.Sorensen Tue, 12/10/2019 - 15:28

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Russian athletes competed under a neutral flag at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, following a ban on Russia's participation by the International Olympic Committee (Michael Kappeler/Picture Alliace via Getty Images)

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In its most severe sanctions yet, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has voted to ban Russia from international sport for four years. As a result, Russia is banned from participating at next summer’s Olympics in Tokyo, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and the 2022 soccer World Cup in Qatar.

The latest ban on Russia was imposed after Moscow was found to have planted fake evidence and tampered with laboratory data it handed over earlier this year. Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier this week that Moscow has grounds to appeal the decision.

Peter Donnelly, a professor of the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education (KPE), specializes in sport policy and politics. He recently spoke to KPE’s Jelena Damjanovic about the latest in the scandal to engulf Russia’s sport apparatus.

What’s your take on WADA’s decision? Has it gone too far, or not far enough as some critics are implying?

Since it is almost impossible to directly penalize those most responsible for the widespread state-sponsored doping that has occurred in Russia – the sports officials and administrators, the politicians, the physicians and pharmacists, the coaches, and the FSB (Russian Federal Security Service) who enabled the on-site doping manipulation at the Sochi Olympics – then I think WADA's decision may be the best possible outcome.

Some Western athletes and a number of national anti-doping agencies have been calling for harsher penalties such as a blanket ban on Russian participation in international sport. But collective punishments are always problematic. They are always a sign that those assigning the penalties are unable to distinguish who is guilty and who is not, so they punish everyone.

From an athletes’ rights perspective the rights of “clean” athletes outside of Russia are of primary importance. Many of them have lost medals and related opportunities because they lost to athletes who had an unfair advantage through doping. They have a right to know that – although a completely level playing field is impossible, particularly in terms of the athlete training and development in high-income countries versus middle- and low-income countries – their competitors are not cheating. But it is also important to consider the rights of Russian athletes. Of course, there will be some who embraced and benefited from the state-sponsored doping system. But many who refused to participate in the doping program will have been dropped from the Russian high performance program and lost a chance for a career as an international athlete. And many others will have been pressured to take drugs against the threat of being dropped from the high-performance program – a decision not taken lightly by athletes who have spent years developing their strength and skills in order to achieve national team status.

The decision to permit “clean” Russian athletes to compete internationally is controversial, but to penalize them collectively with those involved in the doping program would have been an even worse decision.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev blamed the decision on anti-Russian hysteria. Do you think there’s any truth to that?

It's always interesting to hear guilty parties playing the victim card. On its past record, I suspect WADA would not have imposed such an extensive ban on Russia's participation in international sport. But WADA has been under a great deal of pressure to impose significant penalties on Russia, not only for the state-sponsored doping program, but also for its failure to take responsibility for cheating or any meaningful steps to eradicate doping in Russia. That pressure has come from international athletes, athletes' organizations, national anti-doping agencies and international sport federations such as the International Association of Athletics Federations (now World Athletics). And that pressure accounts for the decision, not anti-Russian hysteria.

Under the terms of the sanction, Russian athletes can still compete at international events under a “neutral banner” if they are able to prove themselves to be clean. How difficult will it be for Russian athletes to prove that?

Russian athletes will have to have a “biological passport” that indicates normal levels of chemicals in their blood; they will have to have passed doping tests at all international competitions where they have competed and their names must not have appeared on the state-doping records obtained by WADA. They are likely to be monitored for doping even more closely than other athletes. This is not a foolproof system, especially since the current penalties against Russia were incurred because of evidence that so many of the RUSADA (Russia Anti-Doping Agency) records were destroyed.

Russia can appeal the sentence to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. What are the odds of CAS overturning WADA’s decision?

As Sean Ingle wrote in The Guardian, “Who knows what CAS will decide? But we can say this for certain: Its legal judgments often wrong-foot perceived wisdom." Although CAS is presumed to be in independent body, there are some concerns about its decisions because it is funded by the International Olympic Committee. And the IOC has been most reluctant about bans on Russian sport. I suspect that if CAS modifies or overturns WADA's decision, international sport may not be able to manage or control the outcry from international athletes and national anti-doping agencies from across the world.

Psychological abuse is most common form of maltreatment experienced by national team athletes, �Թϱ�� study finds

noreen.rasbach — Mon, 13 May 2019 15:18:07 +0000

Psychological abuse is most common form of maltreatment experienced by national team athletes, �Թϱ�� study finds

noreen.rasbach Mon, 05/13/2019 - 11:18

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Female athletes, both current and retired, reported experiencing far more harmful behaviours across all categories – psychological, physical, sexual and neglect, the survey found (photo via Getty Images)

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The most common form of maltreatment experienced by athletes is psychological abuse, followed by neglect, a new study from the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education has found.

The findings are the result of a survey to determine the prevalence of maltreatment among current and former national team athletes, conducted in partnership with AthletesCan and with support from the federal government.

While recognizing the numerous potential benefits that sport participation has to offer, the study looked at all forms of maltreatment, including sexual abuse, physical abuse, psychological abuse, neglect, various types of harassment, bullying and hazing.

“Most troubling are that neglectful and psychologically harmful behaviours such as the use of demeaning, threatening or humiliating comments, and denying basic needs such as food, water and safe training conditions, are accepted as normal practices in sport,” said Gretchen Kerr, a professor at the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education and lead author of the study.

“We wouldn’t accept such behaviours in any other walk of life so why should athletes have to endure these?”

Of the 1,001 athletes who participated in the study, 764 were current athletes and 273 were retired athletes who had left their sport within the past 10 years. Female athletes, both current and retired, reported experiencing far more harmful behaviours – psychological, physical, sexual and neglect. Similarly, retired athletes reported experiencing higher percentages of harm than current athletes across all categories.

In the case of psychological harm, most behaviours were enacted by coaches, followed by peers and high-performance directors. Neglectful behaviours were experienced from coaches, high performance directors and sport administrators, while physically harmful behaviours were enacted primarily by coaches. Finally, most sexually harmful behaviours were executed by coaches and peers.

The findings revealed a significant relationship between each form of harmful experience and negative health outcomes such as engaging in self-harming behaviours, eating disorders and having suicidal thoughts. The findings also revealed that negative health outcomes are experienced by athletes long after their athletic career on the national team has ended.

“As high performance athletes, we are in a unique position to speak to the wide scope of normalized behaviours we have experienced from grassroots to elite sport, but we are only a small portion of recreational and competitive athletes in Canada,” said Erin Willson, a PhD candidate in the faculty's exercise science program and former Olympian, who co-authored the study with Kerr and KPE Associate Professor Ashley Stirling.

“If we have experienced maltreatment throughout our sport pathway, this study then brings into question how many other athletes are experiencing harm that are not yet at this level, or have dropped out because of abusive experiences before making it onto a national team.”

Some of the themes that emerged from the comments provided by the surveyed athletes include the perception that the normalization of numerous harmful behaviours have resulted in complicit adults in positions of trust and authority who fail to intervene even when they witness such behaviours. Athletes also commented on the ways in which they are silenced through threats of negative repercussions in response to raising concerns, and not having a safe and confidential place to disclose or to report concerns. Of those current and retired athletes who experienced any form of maltreatment, only 15 per cent reported their experiences.

The following are recommendations made by athletes to advance safe sport:

Establish a mechanism to receive, investigate and resolve complaints independent of the National Sport Organizations
Address all forms of maltreatment
Enhance the focus on athletes’ holistic well-being
Implement mandatory education for all sport stakeholders
Strengthen accountability measures
Ensure supports and resources are available for victims of maltreatment
Prohibit sexual relationships and forced intimacy between athletes and those in positions of power
Conduct a climate survey of athletes’ experiences on a regular basis

“The last prevalence study of Canadian athletes’ experiences was conducted over 20 years ago and since that time, the culture with respect to reporting sexual violence as well as child and youth protection has changed dramatically,” says Kerr.

“Not only does this prevalence study provide a snapshot of athletes’ experiences but it serves as baseline data against which to assess the impact of future preventative and intervention initiatives.”

'Determination, dedication and distinction': Varsity Blues athletes honoured with Silver T awards

noreen.rasbach — Wed, 03 Apr 2019 04:00:00 +0000

'Determination, dedication and distinction': Varsity Blues athletes honoured with Silver T awards

noreen.rasbach Wed, 04/03/2019 - 00:00

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Silver T winners pose with �Թϱ�� President Meric Gertler and Ira Jacobs, dean of the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education, at last week's President's Reception (photo by Seyran Mammadov)

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The University of Toronto honoured 27 Varsity Blues athletes with Silver T awards at the 14^th annual President's Reception last week at the Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport.

�Թϱ�� President Meric Gertler hosted the annual event, which was started by his predecessor, President Emeritus David Naylor, in 2006.

The luncheon recognizes the athletic excellence of the Varsity Blues, while acknowledging the hard work and dedication of staff, students and volunteers who make the Varsity Blues intercollegiate program possible.

“The University of Toronto student athletes have donned the blue for over 140 years. They’ve represented �Թϱ�� with determination, dedication and distinction and the group that we have gathered here today is no exception,” said President Gertler. “This past season has seen another bumper crop of individual and collective victories, personal bests and proud podium moments, giving our community so many reasons to cheer.

“I love following your exploits on Instagram.”

Ten Varsity Blues teams were crowned provincial champions, 109 athletes were named Ontario University Athletics (OUA) all-stars, 22 were named University Sports (U Sports) all-Canadians. �Թϱ�� also claimed five OUA coaches of the year and two national coaches of the year.

“Of course, today we are recognizing more than just the results of a single season,” said President Gertler. “Today we are also saluting each and every Varsity Blues athlete for your talent, commitment and amazing ability to balance academics with the demands of highly competitive athletics. You’re part of a tradition of exceptional student athletes who have done our university very proud and who have created an amazing legacy of excellence.”

�Թϱ�� runs one of the largest and most successful university sports programs on the continent with 42 teams competing in 24 sports and close to 900 student athletes involved. President Gertler thanked the entire Varsity athletics community for their efforts and dedication in accomplishing this massive undertaking. He acknowledged the faculty members, coaches, trainers, volunteers, as well as the people working in registrar’s offices in the various colleges, divisions and campuses at �Թϱ�� for supporting and encouraging student athletes.

“You have all enriched our students’ education and lives outside the classroom, outside of the laboratories and libraries,” said President Gertler, who was presented framed pictures of this season’s Varsity champions in recognition of his support for �Թϱ��’s athletics program.

�Թϱ�� President Meric Gertler and KPE Dean Ira Jacobs give Laura Amoi the Silver T award at the 2019 Varsity Blues President's Reception (photo by Seyran Mammadov)

Professor Ira Jacobs, dean of the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education, said he was proud to be a member of a university community that provides opportunities for student athletes to perform, train and experience the life of high performance athletes.

“I want to congratulate you for taking the initiative of adding that experience to everything else that you do as students of �Թϱ�� and managing your life so appropriately,” he said.

Jacobs said he was also very proud that the university is able to provide student athletes with the environment to be the best they can be.

“As a physiologist, I know that an athlete’s ability to use their potential is dependent on the support we can provide them as an institution, as a university, and that includes buildings like the Goldring Centre, but also the coaches – the people that run and operate these facilities, the people that carry on the financial planning transactions, the people that work in sport medicine and so many more,” said Jacobs.

Jacobs and Gertler presented the student athletes with their Silver Ts, as Beth Ali, executive director of athletics and physical activity at the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education, introduced their athletic achievements.

“I am always amazed when I see all of you here in your Varsity Blues gear,” said Ali.

“This day is very exciting for all of us in the Varsity Blues program, because it’s an opportunity for us to recognize the great efforts of our student athletes and coaches, and also for me to share with our guests what I get every day from working with all of you. Nothing makes me happier than watching our students compete provincially, locally or nationally. You are true ambassadors of our program,” she said.

Laura Amoi, a fifth-year Rotman Commerce student and member of the Varsity Blues track and field team, was among the student athletes awarded with the Silver T award. She joined the track and field team in her first year as an undergraduate student, specializing in the long jump and triple jump program.

“Being part of the team has given me lots of balance in terms of having a schedule and learning to discipline myself,” said Amoi. “You have a lot of free time at university, you don’t have as many classes as you do in high school, so being on a Varsity team helped me manage my time better.”

Amoi says that being on the Varsity team also gave her a family of teammates and coaches she wouldn’t have met otherwise “and those are relationships that are going to last for a lifetime.”

She thinks of her award as a reward for her perseverance.

“It’s not been an easy ride, there have been a lot of ups and downs and sometimes the downs lasted for a month or two months or even a year, due to injuries or academic difficulties. But, this feels like a reward for the perseverance,” Amoi said.

Gertler and Jacobs give Victoria Radounski the Silver T award at the reception (photo by Seyran Mammadov)

Fifth-year kinesiology student and member of the Varsity Blues swimming team Victoria Radounski was also awarded with a Silver T. Like Amoi, she joined the Varsity Blues in her first year and also credits her time management skills to that decision.

“We have such a rigorous schedule, so there’s been a lot of balancing between school and swimming, waking up early, going to bed on time, very little time to do anything else. You really have to be on top of everything and plan ahead of time,” said Radounski.

“I remember coming into my first year and thinking this was so overwhelming, but then I told myself I can do this, it’s only temporary and it will be good in the long run.”

Getting the Silver T was proof her perseverance paid off.

The prestigious Silver T is awarded primarily to Bronze T holders in their graduating year for outstanding athletic performance. Here is a complete list of the 2018-19 Silver T recipients:

Laura Amoi, track and field

Jason Barnable, lacrosse

Matt Campagna, hockey

Gillian Ceyhan, track and field

Chelsea Cheung, soccer

Colin Dale, fencing

Matt Dans, swimming

Ezana Debalkew, track and field

Gabriela DeBues-Stafford, cross country/track and field

Ben DeVito, cross country/track and field

Anna Feore, volleyball

Mitchel Ferraro, swimming

Kelsey Fuchs, golf

Natasha Klasios, soccer

Craig Klomp, cross country/track and field

Vivian Kwok, badminton

Alex Lau, track and field

Robert Lawand, cross country/track and field

Kylie Masse, swimming

Gabriel Nakonechny, baseball

Keyira Parkes, basketball

Victoria Radounski, swimming

Brittany Salmon, track and field

Euan Scoffield, water polo

Graham Tebbitt, baseball

Andrei Vovk, rowing/nordic skiing

Emily Ziraldo, field hockey

'Excellence both on and off the court': �Թϱ�� athlete named Top 8 Academic All-Canadian

Christopher.Sorensen — Mon, 14 Jan 2019 21:30:55 +0000

'Excellence both on and off the court': �Թϱ�� athlete named Top 8 Academic All-Canadian

Christopher.Sorensen Mon, 01/14/2019 - 16:30

Cutline

�Թϱ��'s Alina Dormann achieved her success on the volleyball court while pursuing a double major in biology, and health and disease (photo by Martin Bazyl)

Topic

City & Culture

Faculty of Arts & Science

Varsity Blues

Victoria College

The University of Toronto’s Alina Dormann, a fourth-year Varsity Blues volleyball player, has been named a Top 8 Academic All-Canadian for the 2017-18 season.

The elite group, selected by university sports governing body U Sports, will be honoured with the Governor General's Academic All-Canadian Commendation in Ottawa on Jan. 29.

In order to achieve academic all-Canadian status, athletes must maintain an average of 80 per cent or better over the academic year while competing for one – or more – of their university's varsity teams.

“Alina embodies excellence both on and off the court,” said Kristine Drakich, the Varsity Blues' longtime head coach.

Dormann becomes the 10th Varsity Blues athlete, and the seventh in the past nine years, to earn the recognition since its inception a quarter century ago. She entered the 2017-18 intercollegiate season after spending the summer with the Canadian senior women's national team. She represented Canada at the 2017 FISU Summer Universiade in Taipei and went onto have another dominant season for the Blues on the court.

The Ottawa native led Ontario University Athletics (OUA) with 3.66 kills per set – good for seventh in the nation – and ranked second in the province and fourth nationally with 4.6 points per set through 18 matches. She also topped Toronto in total attacks and serving aces, while ranking second in digs per set and third in blocks per set. Dormann was named the OUA East player of the year for the third consecutive season, while also earning her third career U Sports all-Canadian nod.

Dormann led �Թϱ�� to a 15-4 regular season record and notched a season-high 27.5 points as Toronto topped the Guelph Gryphons, 3-2, to advance to their seventh straight OUA final four.

More impressive, Dormann achieved all of this while pursuing a double major in biology, and health and disease. The Victoria College student has won several academic awards.

In addition to her excellence on the court and in the classroom, Dormann makes time to give back to the volleyball community. She volunteered as an assistant coach with the Ontario Volleyball Association during the 2018 Ontario Summer Games and served an assistant coach at Volleyball Position Camp, which trains players in their chosen position.

Dormann also coaches recreational house league, competitive beach and skills clinics with the Leaside Volleyball Club in Toronto.

“She is an amazing student and athlete,” says Drakich. “Not only has she been an outstanding player, including representing Canada at the FISU Games in 2017 and being named an all-Canadian, but she has also maintained one of the highest grade point averages in the history of our program.”

�Թϱ�� extends partnership with Canadian Sport Institute Ontario

ullahnor — Fri, 13 Apr 2018 20:28:41 +0000

�Թϱ�� extends partnership with Canadian Sport Institute Ontario

ullahnor Fri, 04/13/2018 - 16:28

Cutline

KPE has extended its partnership with the Canadian Sport Institute Ontario to support top athletes and increase research opportunities in sport science (photo by Martin Bazyl)

Topic

City & Culture