Connecting Ontario sports organizations would help fix 'fragmented' system: Brock U researcher

Changes to Ontario's sport system are needed to make community sports run more effectively and allow everyone to take part in events that are fun and safe, according to the lead researcher of a new report calling for change.

"We have a really fragmented system where people are disconnected, organizations are disconnected," Brock University sport management associate professor Kyle Rich said on CBC Radio's Metro Morning this week.

"So we're in a situation where they're making the same mistakes in different places, maybe are struggling with the same things, when they could be helping each other. And so without that space to come together ... we have a really, really fragmented system across the different regions and across the different sports."

According to Rich, the Ontario Sport Summit Report — released May 19 — outlines how sport is being delivered in the province in the face of increased challenges. Rich collaborated with Ontario Sport Network, the Coaches Association of Ontario, Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment's Launchpad program, and the University of Toronto for the research. 

Rich said while there are some organizations in the province "who are doing a great job," how things are being run can be inconsistent across different places and organizations.

He noted that, in Ontario, there have been changes in the sports system, and "a whole bunch of brand new sport organizations" have entered the arena, but "we don't really know what they're doing because we're not really following up with them and ensuring that these things are being implemented in the same way."

As an example, Rich pointed to the implementation of Rowan's Law in Ontario — the concussion legislation that applies to all organizations. He also