Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Hockey Canada’s handling of an alleged sexual assault is again under fire as one of its highest profile sponsors, Scotiabank, announces they’re pausing their sponsorship with the Canadian hockey organization.
The financial institution took out a full-page in Tuesday’s Globe and Mail, with Scotiabank president and CEO Brian J. Porter writing, "Like so many of you, I was appalled by the recent reports of alleged assault involving younger ambassadors of Canada's game."
"We believe we have a responsibility as hockey lovers and sponsors to contribute to positive change in the sport.”
Scotiabank says they’re pausing their partnership with Hockey Canada until they’re “confident the right steps are being taken to improve the culture of the sport.”
Scotiabank is cancelling their planned marketing and events at the upcoming World Junior Championship in Edmonton this August. Instead, redirecting some of their sponsorship funds to the Canadian Women’s Foundation, a charity that supports women who are the victims of gender-based violence.
In April, a lawsuit was filed by an unnamed woman who alleges she was repeatedly sexually assaulted in a London, Ont., hotel room following a Hockey Canada tournament and gala.
Her lawsuit alleges some of her attackers were members of Canada’s 2018 World Junior gold-medal winning team. The allegations against the unnamed players haven’t been proven in court. The lawsuit has been settled for an undisclosed amount of money, and a non-disclosure agreement has been signed.
Sexual assault survivor and former NHL player, Sheldon Kennedy, believes hockey Canada needs to provide more transparency and that begins with ripping up the non-disclosure agreement.
“The last thing we need to do is freeze voices, people that have been abused in anyway shape or form have had their voices frozen from the time the abuse started, so I don’t think we should be using NDA’s to keep freezing a victims voice if they choose to speak,” Kennedy tells CTV News.
Hockey Canada’s president has gone on record admitting that players who attended the event in London weren’t required to participate in the associations third-party investigation.
In response, Scotiabank's CEO stated, “the time for change is long overdue.”
“We call on Hockey Canada to move with a sense of urgency in order to ensure that the game we love is held to the highest standards and can truly be hockey for all.”
Journalist Laura Robinson began investigating sexual assault culture in junior hockey in the 1990s. She calls the language used by Scotiabank precedent setting, telling CTV News, “I think this is the first time we’ve seen something like this. I don’t recall a corporate sponsor pulling out of such a major (sport). You can’t get bigger than hockey in Canada.”
Robinson believes Hockey Canada is more interested in shielding the organization than potential victims of sexual assault.
“It’s a deeply embedded cultural issue and I don’t think they’re interested in really examining what it is about hockey that produces such violent sexual acts.”
Hockey Canada declined CTV News’ request for an on-camera interview Tuesday, instead sending a statement saying, “Hockey Canada is on a journey to change the culture of our sport and to make it safer and more inclusive, both at the rink and in our communities. We have been on this journey for some time, but we agree that more needs to be done, and more quickly.”
Kennedy says the future of the sport is on the line.
“What’s at stake in my opinion is healthy communities, heathy kids and healthy families. If we keep seeing headlines of sexual abuse happening here, cover-up happening there, who’s going to sign their kids up? We’re already seeing the downfall of not making these issues the number one priority in an organization. If we want to grow the game, if we want sport to be for everyone, these issues have to be number one."
Scotiabank says they’re pausing their partnership with Hockey Canada until they’re “confident the right steps are being taken to improve the culture of the sport.”
Robinson says change needs to finally start from the bottom up.
“Hockey is such a beautiful sport that we really need to look very carefully how this culture has been created and do some really huge changes.”
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly Knight, a Grade 4 student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.