Canadian athlete representatives are calling on the federal government to increase funding for the Athlete Assistance Program (APP) by $6.3 million in the 2024 federal budget.
AthletesCAN, the Canadian National Team Athletes Association, the Canadian Olympic Committee Athletes Commission and the Canadian Paralympic Committee Athletes Council made the announcement Thursday, saying the proposed funding increase is in line with inflation since 2017 – the last time the program was adjusted.
The AAP provides Canadian elite athletes with grants for living expenses, training and tuition fees.
This call for increased funding comes just ten days after the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee jointly requested an additional $104 million in funding from the federal government.
COC and CPC called on the federal government to make critical investments in Canadian athletes and a stronger, safer sports system after releasing the results of a Deloitte study on the financial health of Canadian national sports organizations, stressing that the increase is urgently needed to avoid a crisis.
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