Special Olympics Canada recognizes our responsibility to prioritize creating a safe sport environment free of abuse, harassment or discrimination for all participants, including athletes, coaches, volunteers, officials, and administrators.

Are you a victim or witness of harassment, abuse or discrimination in sport? Contact the Canadian Sport Helpline to share your concerns and be referred to the appropriate resources.

Open from 8 am to 8 pm (ET) 7 days a week, it is anonymous, confidential, independent and bilingual:

Safe Sport Policies

Special Olympics Canada and its Chapters recognize the recent development of the Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport (UCCMS).

A suite of policies is currently in development in partnership with Sport Law and Strategy Group (SLSG). Our existing policies, and new policies as they are available, can be found below and will continue to be updated here.

Independent Third Party

As of September 2023, Special Olympics Canada has formally adopted the UCCMS and joined the Abuse-Free Sport program. As such, complaints regarding alleged violations to the UCCMS for those participants that fall under the Special Olympics Canada’s code of conduct should be reported via OSIC’s reporting page.

Reporting Abuse or Harassment is often a difficult process. To this end, a person can expect the following when contacting the Independent Third Party:

All reports will be kept entirely confidential, in line with the wishes of the person making the complaint. This includes confidentiality from SOC staff.

• Complaint will be followed up on in a timely manner.
• The Independent Third Party is available to support persons making a complaint through the process and will provide advice and guidance on steps as and if a
• complaint proceeds.
• Complaint will be taken seriously, and rigorously examined.
• Complaint will be managed in the language, and by an officer of the gender identity of your choice.

Should any complaint or concern come to the attention of the CEO or any SOC representative, it will be forwarded to the Independent Third Party.

Concussion Resources

Special Olympics Canada recognizes that participation in any sport or physical activity has some risk of head injuries, including concussions. The information on this page will help you learn more about concussions and how Special Olympics Canada and its Chapters are addressing concussions to support the health and safety of all our athletes and volunteers.

Concussion Awareness Resources

A concussion is a type of brain injury that affects how a person’s brain functions. Special Olympics Canada suggests the resources below to learn more about concussions and how to prevent, recognize and manage these injuries.

For Parents/Guardians

For Coaches and Volunteers

For Athletes

Residents of Ontario have unique requirements for concussion awareness under Rowan’s Law.

For more information about concussions, visit

Special Olympics Canada Concussion Policy, Protocol and Tools

The Special Olympics Canada Pan-Canadian Concussion Policy and Protocol will be followed at all organization-sanctioned events.

This protocol explains all the steps to follow, from annual concussion education through safe return-to-sport after a concussion

This tool can be used by anyone to help recognize a possible concussion in Special Olympics athletes. Any athlete with a suspected concussion must be removed from participation and medically assessed.

This letter should be provided to athletes with a suspected concussion, to take to their doctor. It confirms whether a concussion has been diagnosed or not.

This letter should be provided to athletes with a diagnosed concussion, to be signed by their doctor. It confirms when the athlete has recovered and can return to full sport participation with no restrictions.