February 25/03 12:49 pm - Mondial du Velo 2003, COC $8.7 Million Excellence Fund

Posted by Editoress on 02/25/03
 

Mondial du Velo 2003 Calendar of Events

Mondial du Velo has published their 2003 calendar for the following events: UCI Masters World Championships, Canada Cup, Quebec Cup, The 12 Hours of Bromont, The 24 Hours of Bromont, The Criterium in Downtown Granby, The Cyclotour des Cantons, part of the International UCI Golden Bike Series and The Canadian and North American Masters Track Championships.

Visit Mondial du Velo at the Toronto and Montreal Bicycle shows: February 28 - March 2, March 7 - 9.


COC Launches $8.7 Million Excellence Fund

Toronto, February 25, 2003 - The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC), with the Government of Canada, announced today the launch of the COC's new Excellence Fund, which will invest $8.7 million over the next two years to support high performance athletes, coaches, national sport federations and Canadian Sport Centres to help boost Canada's chances of success at upcoming Olympic and Pan American Games.

"As the largest private supporter of high performance sport in Canada, the Canadian Olympic Committee is taking a leadership role in investing as much as it can to support Canada's athletes," said COC Chief Executive Officer Chris Rudge. "Our new Excellence Fund will ensure that those athletes and sports with the best potential for success receive increased support. We will continue to work with the business community, Canadian government and private donors to increase support for sport excellence in Canada."

The Excellence Fund, which is the only fund of its kind in Canada that specifically rewards potential sport success and provides direct financial assistance to high performance athletes and coaches, builds on existing COC funding programs that combined provide approximately $13.3 million per year to support high performance sport and Games missions. Since the aim of the Excellence Fund is to generate incremental revenue for athletes and high performance sport, the COC is encouraging the Canadian business and philanthropic community to support the fund. The COC is pleased that the Government of Canada, through Sport Canada, is investing $1 million to the Excellence Fund to confirm its commitment to Canada's high performance athletes.

"The Government of Canada is committed to working with partners to create a leading-edge and athlete centered sport system. This joint investment will enable our Olympic athletes to perform successfully and consistently on the world stage," said Secretary of State (Amateur Sport) Paul DeVillers.

Petro-Canada, one of the COC's longtime sponsors, is also supporting the Excellence Fund by contributing $750,000 from its Olympic Torch Scholarship Fund.

Approximately $4.8 million of the Excellence Fund will be directed toward athletes and sports preparing for the summer Olympic Games in Athens, with half being allocated for 2003 and the other half being set aside for 2004, contingent upon 2003 performances. Winter sport funding recipients, who will receive $1 million from the fund, will be announced this summer. The rest of the funding, approximately $2.9 million, will go directly to athletes ranked Top 5 in the world and toward supporting the six Canadian Sport Centres located across the country. The attached backgrounder provides a sport-by-sport breakdown of the funding to summer sports in 2003.

To determine how much each sport would receive, a Sport Review Committee of five technical representatives, chaired by Mark Lowry, the COC's Executive Director of Sport, reviewed each summer Olympic and Pan Am-only sport over the past few months to identify athletes, teams, coaches and programs with the greatest potential for success at future Olympic and Pan American Games.

"This initiative of investing in athletes, coaches and sports with the highest probability of success at upcoming Games is critical if Canada wants to be competitive internationally," said Glenroy Gilbert, Olympic gold medallist in the 4X100 metre relay in Atlanta in 1996 and a recipient of funding as a National Sprint Coach. "I want to thank the Canadian Olympic Committee for stepping up to the plate by creating the Excellence Fund to support high performance sport. With additional support, more Canadian athletes can achieve their dream of reaching the Olympic podium."

The COC, a private, not-for-profit corporation, is the largest private supporter of high performance sport in Canada. It is responsible for all aspects of Canada's involvement in the Olympic movement, including Canada's participation in the Olympic and Pan American Games and a wide variety of programs that promote the Olympic Movement in Canada through cultural and educational means. For more information see the COC website: www.coa.ca www.coa.ca