The Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport is set to rebrand itself as Sport Integrity Canada starting in January to better align with its expanded roles, according to the organization’s chair. Previously known for overseeing domestic doping regulations and monitoring sports betting integrity, the CCES was entrusted with the additional responsibility of ensuring safe sport practices this year by former federal sports minister Carla Qualtrough.
Since April 1, the center has taken on the task of handling and investigating complaints of abuse and misconduct in sports, as well as managing the public registry of individuals banned from sports or under provisional sanctions, following the dissolution of the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC).
Board chair Jocelyn Downie stated on Tuesday, “In light of our new mandate, we are reassessing not only our strategic direction but also our organizational framework. Our aim is to guarantee that the organization is adequately prepared to carry out its role as the leading authority on sport integrity in Canada. This name change marks our progression as an autonomous sport integrity entity in recent years.”
Similar to the limitations faced by OSIC, the CCES is only able to oversee sports organizations that receive federal funding, leaving provincial, territorial, university, and club sports outside its purview. Although there is a possibility of extending the center’s jurisdiction to encompass these levels of sport, it would necessitate additional funding, as mentioned by CCES safe sport executive director Signy Arnason earlier this year.
One of the key reasons for transitioning from OSIC to CCES was to enhance the independence of the process, as noted by Qualtrough. While the CCES is funded by the federal government, the government does not have a say in the selection or appointment of its board members. However, the organization is not subject to the Access to Information Act, meaning that the public cannot request information from it.