Following years of uneven funding and underfunded high performance athletes, the provincial government is rewriting the Alberta Sports Plan which dictates funding for every sports organization in the province.
The current plan has been in place for 10 years and is often criticized for poor levels of support as it lags behind perennial amateur sport supporters such as Quebec.
Last year, the provincial budget for sport was cut by more than $500,000, which made matters worse. Currently, every one of Alberta’s 120 amateur sport organizations is weighed on the same scale, so Olympic medals or Canada Games performances don’t mean much.
That could change under the rewritten plan, which is currently out for public input. The government asks the public to state how they’d fund sport in Alberta.
“You have the debate, (fund) high performance, more medals versus neighbourhood bragging rights. It’s not one or the other. There is a need for both. Athletes who have achieved on the world stage inspire other athletes (at the recreational stage). Where you don’t have those top performers, those sports struggle,” Minister of Tourism Richard Starke said. “You have to have athletes at every step in the development ladder. You don’t want any gaps and that create challenges.”
Starke re-iterated all funding decisions are wide open and the public input process over the next several months will indeed play a big role in how sports dollars are spent in Alberta.
Alpine skiing is one of the high achievers in Alberta. More than 4,000 Alberta athletes take part in the sport every year and the provincial body is well funded by corporate dollars and an army of volunteers. Provincial funding only makes up 15 per cent of the annual budget, but fees are high.
To be a member of the Alberta Alpine Provincial Ski Team, teenage athletes face $25,000 in team fees annually. According to Adam Hull, president of Alberta Alpine, that number would easily be $50,000 if it weren’t for corporate and provincial support.
So should the province give alpine skiing more money to help keep high performance costs down? Or should the money go to smaller organizations which rely heavily on provincial dollars to stay alive?
“It’s about finding the right balance,” said Starke. “Alpine is one of the highest participant sports in the province, so by virtue of that, they’re entitled to support. We don’t want to penalize a group for being aggressive or getting corporate support. The allotment they receive is relatively high, but it’s also not a high percentage of their overall budget – it’s about 10 to 15 per cent. We’d love other PSOs (provincial sports organizations) to get that high level of professionalism and corporate support. But for some, it’s not possible. You need a level of critical mass, and some don’t have that.”
During the provincial election, Premier Alison Redford vowed to double amateur sport funding, but the money isn’t flowing yet. Minister Starke said the government is still committed to spending an additional $10 million on sport.
