Statistics Canada estimated in 2010 that about one-third of Canadian men regularly participated in sport, compared with just one-sixth of Canadian women. In a report released last fall, the House of Commons heritage committee recommended setting specific targets for getting more women and girls involved in sport. Gord Grace, CEO of Ontario University Athletics, said he would welcome any support for recruiting and retaining more female athletes at a crucial age. Those barriers to girls can crop up right at the community level, added Sandmeyer-Graves. “That can almost be like a tax on being a girl in the system.”— Follow @smithjoanna on Twitter

Source: National Post February 28, 2018 20:15 UTC