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TORONTO -- It’s no secret: sports are expensive.
From specialized equipment to training facility rentals and personalized nutrition and fitness plans, high-performance sports often come with a hefty price tag. And for many athletes across Canada, the cost can be a major barrier to entry.
In fact, according to a 2019 survey conducted by the Aspen Institute, kids from low-income homes participate in sports less often.
“There are a lot of costs associated with sport,” said Cindy Yelle, Chief Executive of the Canadian Olympic Foundation. “It’s the training, the travel, the equipment. The (more advanced in sport) an athlete gets, there are more opportunity costs associated.”RBC Training Ground provides help with this in the form of funding, provided to ‘Future Olympians’ identified by the program as being on track to join Team Canada.
“Not only does (this funding) help gain access to things like coaching and therapists… it also provides athletes with that motivation and that vote of confidence from RBC and the entire sport system in our country,” Yelle said.
She added later: “We’re picking 30 athletes per year — out of a lot of contenders — and saying, ‘you’ve got something special and we believe in your potential.’”
Jenny Trew, the Lead NextGen track coach at Cycling Canada, has witnessed the power of this funding first-hand.
“One of the biggest expenses in cycling is the equipment,” Trew said. “An entry-level bicycle would probably be $2,500, all the way up to $6,000 and upwards. Coaching runs anywhere from $100 to $200 per hour, plus a gym membership and a strength and conditioning coach on top of that.”
And that doesn’t even include competition entry, track access, international travel and more. Suffice it to say, without the opportunity to secure grants through RBC Training Ground, some great cyclists may not make it to the world stage simply due to the costs.
“With RBC Training Ground, it’s a lower barrier to entry,” Trew said. “(The funding) really helps athletes get that base so they can see what they’re actually capable of doing.”
Funding makes a marked difference with older athletes as well, Trew said.
“When athletes are in their early to mid-twenties and they no longer have the support of their parents, they have to start making decisions about spending money,” Trew said. “Do I spend money on a car so I can drive around or am I going to spend money on my cycling training? Not having to make those trade-offs and really being able to focus on being an athlete is a huge leg up.”
As part of Year 6, RBC Training Ground participants deemed to have high performance potential will be invited to complete sport-specific testing with National Sport Organization partners. From there, 100 athletes will be invited to the RBC Training Ground National Final), with the chance to earn funding and a potential spot on a Canadian National Team.
Developed in partnership with the Canadian Olympic Committee, Canadian Olympic Foundation and with support from the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network, RBC Training Ground is a nation-wide talent identification and athlete-funding program dedicated to finding and funding Canada's future Olympians. In the past five years more than $1.7M has been provided to 117 RBC Future Olympians to help support their Olympic dreams.
To learn more about how the RBC Training Ground has helped athletes reach their full potential, check out the Training Ground Series on Crave.
The RBC Training Ground virtual testing is available until March 5, 2021. For more information visit RBCTrainingGround.ca.
