Athletes and their support staff, International Olympic Committee (IOC) family, technical staff, contractors, volunteers, sponsors, media and spectators all are essential participants in the biggest festival of sport in the world. They all need healthcare, but the priority for the IOC and any organising committee of an Olympic Games (OCOG) is protecting the health of athletes. The demands of at...

In 1979, Canada’s federal government published a national policy on amateur sport. The policy document was ambiguously titled: Partners in the Pursuit of Excellence. In 2005, the federal government committed $55 million to an externally managed program titled Own the Podium. Unlike the policy document from 1979, there is nothing ambiguous about Own the Podium. It makes a definitive statement ab...