The territorial government, in partnership with Lotteries Yukon and Sport Canada, is investing over $1.7 million in sports organizations, special recreation groups, athletes and officials through four funding streams.

The streams assist Yukon sport and recreation organizations with running and organizing activities related to athlete and participant development, coach and leadership growth, special projects, and facility operations and maintenance.

They also support individual athletes and officials who have demonstrated they are at an elite or high-performance level.

The funding includes:

• Foundations Grant Program: $1,092,617;

• Podium Pathway Grant: $462,000;

• Yukon High Performance Athlete/Officials Assistance Program: $129,000; and

• Elite Athlete Assistance Program: $66,000.

The funding represents an annual investment aimed at helping strengthen and grow sport and recreation across the territory.

Yukon sports and recreation organizations provide important opportunities to stay healthy and active while strengthening community and building life skills, Community Services Minister Richard Mostyn said Monday.

“The dedication, hard work and unwavering commitment of Yukon’s teams and athletes, ranging from grassroots to elite levels, serve as a constant source of inspiration,” he said.

“As a government, we remain committed to working with our partners to provide ongoing support to our teams and athletes, ensuring the continuous growth of these opportunities throughout the territory.”

Foundations Grant funding helps Yukon sport governing bodies and special recreation groups develop and deliver sport and recreation development funding.

“Our government remains committed to investing in sport and recreation opportunities throughout the Yukon,” said Sandy Silver, the minister responsible for Yukon Lotteries Commission.

“We will continue to work with partners such as Yukon Lotteries, which is overseen by the Yukon Lotteries Commission, to help increase access and participation for all Yukoners in sport and recreation activities.

“By empowering individuals to develop their skills and abilities in these areas, we are building a strong, resilient and community-driven Yukon together,” Silver added.

Podium Pathway Grant supports enhanced sport participation initiatives.

“Every Canadian should have access to quality sport and physical activity opportunities,” said Pascale St-Onge, the minister of Sport and minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec.

“The Government of Canada is committed to building stronger and more inclusive communities across the country, and sport plays an essential role in achieving this goal.

“We are proud to support initiatives that allow communities in Yukon to grow and thrive—physically, emotionally and socially.

“Together, we are making sport more equitable and accessible for everyone,” St-Onge added.

The Yukon High Performance Athlete Assistance program provides funding for athletes who have demonstrated performance that is beyond territorial level, with the potential improvement at the provincial, national or international levels.

The Elite Athlete Assistance program funds athletes who are carded by Sport Canada and assists them to prepare and participate in international sport.

In August 2022, the federal government announced $20 million in renewed funding over five years for Indigenous youth and sport, starting in 2022-23.

Among other initiatives, this funding supports the Indigenous youth in sport supplement of the Yukon government’s agreement to increase culturally relevant sport programming for Indigenous children and youth and to strengthen Indigenous leadership capacity of the territorial Aboriginal sport body.

As well, the federal government supports sport participation in the Yukon through the generic component of the Canada-Yukon bilateral agreement in the amount of $251,725 annually.