History

As an independent, national, charitable organization, the True Sport Foundation has evolved over time from running a campaign that promotes drug-free sport to a foundation committed to ensuring that sport makes a positive contribution to Canadian society.

• In 1993, the Spirit of Sport Foundation was established as a charitable organization affiliated with the Canadian Centre for Drug-free Sport (now known as the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES)).
• The Foundation’s charitable incorporation focussed on public education, promotion, training and research to address performance enhancing drugs, health, ethics and values with strategies targeted to educational institutions, sport organizations, community organizations and the general public.
• The Foundation formed partnerships with Canada Games, Commonwealth Games Canada and Athletes CAN to assume responsibility for programs previously run by the Canadian Sport Council such as the Canadian Sport Awards and the Tariff Relief Program. Eventually, the Canadian Sport Awards grew to become the major activity of the Foundation.
• With the signing of what is known as the “London Declaration” by the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Sport Ministers in 2001, a national ethics strategy (now known as the True Sport Strategy) began to take hold based on a vision and expectation for fair and ethical sport in Canada.
• Following the London Declaration, the True Sport Movement emerged in 2003 which caused the Spirit of Sport Foundation to change its name to the True Sport Foundation in 2004.
• The True Sport Foundation initiated the True Sport Communities and the True Sport Community Awards programs in recognition of Canadian communities dedicated to the promotion and delivery of values-driven sport.
• The True Sport Foundation developed substantial partnerships with Bell Canada, the Ontario Trillium Foundation and the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation to support initiatives that promote access and inclusion in sport and to “animate” the development of True Sport Communities and the expansion of the True Sport Movement.

Since its inception, the True Sport Foundation has also gained the support of some of Canada’s most valued athletes. Together with all of our partners, we have implemented a range of initiatives – from grassroots programs that promote fair play, to national tours that support the efforts of our finest athletes – and we have celebrated the true spirit of sport with Canadians from coast-to-coast-to-coast.