All levels and age groups in Hockey Canada experienced some form of prejudice which includes verbal taunts, insults, and intimidation during the 2021–22 season, according to more than 900 recorded or reported incidents.
The first-ever study from the national sports body that tracks the problem reveals that 512 penalties for prejudice were imposed by officials, and 415 claims were later looked into.
The 14-page document made public on Friday provides specifics on how Rule 11.4, which addresses discrimination specifically, is applied. This includes prejudice that involves racial, linguistic, and religious distinctions as well as discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and handicap.
The organization is currently coping with the major aftermath of alleged sexual assaults involving members of the world junior teams between 2003 and 2018. Court testimony has not established any of the accusations.
According to Hockey Canada, the report released on Friday does not include instances of abuse, sexual violence, or maltreatment that occurred off the ice. These incidents will instead be investigated by the federal government’s Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner or a new independent third-party complaint process beginning this season.
In 2021–2022, 0.18% of the 519,755 registered players were affected by the aggregate per capita rate of penalized and alleged discriminating occurrences.
Punishments on the prejudice that happened
Officials imposed 512 punishments towards the prejudice that happened, of which 61% were related to a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity, 18% to race, and 11% to a handicap. More than half of those events included players under the age of 18, and 76% involved competitive play. 99% of referees’ calls for infractions were male athletes.
47% of the claims that needed an inquiry and weren’t seen by a representative had to do with race, and 40% had to do with sexual orientation or gender identity.
Again, the under-18 age group accounted for 37% of incidences, followed by the under-15 age group with 21%. 67% of the claims that called for an investigation involved male participants, and 31% of the reports lacked information on the gender of the participants.
According to data from Hockey Canada, 37% of allegations that were initially missed by on-ice officials ended up with an “unsubstantiated” judgment, 18% in suspension, 17% in written warnings, and 13% in education, while 10% resulted in multiple or “other” sanctions. The investigation is still ongoing for 5%.
Hockey Canada’s governance was the subject of an independent assessment earlier this year, which found that the organization was at a “crossroads” and urged for stronger supervision and responsibility.
The review was undertaken by former Canada Supreme Court judge Thomas Cromwell. On December 17, provincial and territory members of Hockey Canada will vote on a new board and chair.
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