In celebration of Pride 2018, viaSport is excited to launch our newly developed LGBTQI2S Resources for sport organizations.

A study released last year from the University of British Columbia found that gay, lesbian and bisexual teens in B.C. are half as likely to play sports as straight teens. This staggering statistic deeply encouraged us to join forces with You Can Play, an organization dedicated to ensuring equality, respect and safety for all athletes, coaches, volunteers and spectators, regardless of sexual orientation and/or gender identity or expression.

Through our partnership, we hosted a PRIDE in Sport Forum to help the sport community understand how to create inclusive spaces for individuals that identify with the LGBTQI2S community. Following the PRIDE in Sport Forum, we formed a LGBTQI2S working group with representatives from 11 B.C. provincial and disability sport organizations. With expertise and guidance provided by the working group, You Can Play and a number of other national and provincial organizations, a series of LGBTQI2S Resources have been developed and are now available for sport organizations: 

1.   LGBTQI2S Policy Readiness Checklist
2.   Adopting Inclusive Policy Language
3.   Trans Athlete Inclusion Guidelines
4.   Creating Inclusive Environments
5.   Collecting Gender Identity Information

These resources are intended to equip sport leaders with relevant policy creation, as well as practical, hands-on guidance to create more inclusive environments and practices related to sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression. To directly assist with policy implementation and practice, we encourage sport organizations to contact us with questions and feedback.

While the intended audience of these resources are provincial organizations, there are also applications and learnings for local sport organizations and clubs. By sharing these resources, we can continue to foster sport experiences that are safe, inclusive and meaningful.

For more info, and to download the LGBTQI2S Resources for sport organizations, see https://www.viasport.ca/news/new-lgbtqi2s-resources-sport-organizations