Scarcity behind the medals: Canada's Olympic sports facing funding crisis

The winner of a complete set of medals and Canada's Olympic flag-bearer in Beijing's closing ceremonies is in debt.

Isabelle Weidemann wasn't comfortable stating how far she's in the red. The 29-year-old from Ottawa is paying for things her national sport organization can no longer afford.

"Even at this top level, three Olympic medals, got to carry the flag, the hope is you come out the other side and you're not too far from zero, that you don't have to spend years digging yourself out of this hole," Weidemann said. "To think we struggle to buy groceries, struggle to maintain equipment or purchase training necessities, all these expenses just to be able to compete with the rest of the world, there's such a discrepancy there."

Speed Skating Canada's chief executive officer Joe Morissette acknowledged his organization has cut back.

"Over many years, we've retreated in certain areas," he stated. "If funding is stagnant, we can only do so much."

The last increase in core federal funding for Canada's 62 summer and winter national sport organizations was in 2005.

Core funding is money all NSOs count on to fund operations, athletes, coaches and support staff. Freestyle Canada's chief executive officer Peter Judge called it the "blood in the veins" of his organization.

It's different from Own The Podium money, which is targeted to sports demonstrating medal potential.

A year out from the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina, Italy, Canadian athletes are winning World Cup medals every weekend across multiple sports.

Canada's nine gold medals and 27 total last year in Paris were both records for a non-boycotted Summer Olympics.

But many sport leaders say those results aren't sustainable because of ballooning scarcity beneath