May 15, 2020
Opening Special Olympics Ontario Programs
Attention: Special Olympics Ontario Communities, Clubs, Volunteers, Athletes, Partners, Associates and Families.
As the Province of Ontario begins to open up services, I want to clarify what that means for Special Olympics programs in Ontario.
- Special Olympics Ontario (SOO) programs will remain closed until June 30th or until you get a directive from the provincial office.
- Every registered sports organisation in Ontario must submit a plan to open up programs – which in our case would be 18 plans, plus any specialized programs like Active Start & Fundamentals.
- We are in consultation with all our generic sport partners to align on the technical merits, then make adaptations as necessary.
- Sports are being prioritized based upon many factors related to the current health regulations and the provincial government directives.
The provincial government has made it clear that they are focused on attempting to open the economy as their main priority, not develop or regulate sport and recreation.
This will follow.
The responsibility and liability lies with the registered provincial sport body, in our case Special Olympics Ontario Inc. As you can appreciate, guidelines are evolving and we are working with others to make recommendations and support the effort.
Everything we (SOO) do MUST
safeguard the health and welfare of all our athletes and volunteers.
Stay safe everyone!
