Special Initiatives Overview

Sport Canada also has a number of special initiatives to advance the goals of the Canadian Sport Policy.

The objective of the Sport Canada Research Initiative is to create a foundation of knowledge to advance the goals of the Canadian Sport Policy and to demonstrate the contribution of sport to other public policy priorities.

Long-Term Athlete Development (LTAD) focuses on the general framework of athlete development with special reference to growth, maturation and development. It sets out a pathway from learning fundamental movement skills to sport excellence or lifelong physical activity by addressing the needs of both able bodied and disabled Canadians.

Sport Canada has a number of Participation Initiatives to help increase the number of Canadians participating in sport, particularly among children and youth.

Podium Canada supports Canada's National Sport Organizations (NSOs) and Canadian Sport Centres (CSCs) to increase medal counts by Canadian athletes at Olympic and Paralympic Summer and Winter Games. It encompasses the Own the Podium 2010 initiative for Olympic and Paralympic winter sports, as well as Road to Excellence, an initiative for Olympic and Paralympic summer sports.