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SUMMER PARASPORT REGIONALS
 Summer Regional Games are fast approaching. This year the two Regional qualifiers will be held in Ottawa (May 10) and London (May 25) respectively. Both of these events are qualifiers to go to the 2008 Ontario ParaSport Summer Games for Athletics and Boccia.
Registration is now closed for the Ottawa Regionals but there is still time to sign up for London. The deadline for entry is May 10, after that date entries will not be accepted.
Good luck to all the athletes!!
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DEVELOPMENT UPDATE
 Paralympics Ontario Community Sport Development (CSD) program is off to a great start! Funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation, the CSD program develops new sport clubs for persons with a physical disability in communities across Ontario, and the first two clubs are both well on their way to success. The new Peterborough Pacers Wheelchair Basketball Club just hosted their first tournament and the Ottawa Boccia Club had a wonderful winter season. Paralympics Ontario is providing professional consulting and mentorship to the clubs as they move towards governance and sustainability continuing their development.
Paralympics Ontario will be selecting three more communities to partner with in the fall. The community may have a club just starting off and are in need of some guidance and support or perhaps several athletes are looking to form a club or several community partners feel there is a need in their community, and would like to work towards filling that need. If you feel your community is an ideal Community Sport Development candidate, contact Jill Valentine for further information.
Alongside our CSD program, to ensure we are meeting the needs of Ontario and its diverse communities, Paralympics Ontario will be conducting a province-wide inventory of sports clubs and programs for persons with physical disabilities. This endeavor will provide Paralympics Ontario with a profile of each community as well as a database of all programs to be accessed by anyone looking to find a program that suits their needs. To conduct the research we are looking to hire a Development Program Assistant and feel that a Paralympics Ontario athlete would be an ideal candidate. If you or anyone you know is interested, the posting is available on our website at www.paralympicsontario.ca . |
NEW PROVINCIAL SPONSOR
 Paralympics Ontario is pleased to announce that Shoppers HomeHealthCare will be working with Paralympics Ontario in supporting our ParaSport Summer Games, as well as the Ready Willing and Able program. They are the first to become an official "Provincial Sponsor" of Paralympics Ontario. Shoppers HomeHealthCare became involved with Paralympics Ontario in 2006 by providing financial support to the Host Organizing Committee of the Ontario Paralympic Summer Championship in London. In addition to providing financial support, they were present throughout the weekend to lend a helping hand, bring words of welcome at the Opening Ceremonies and to present the Shoppers HomeHealthCare Award of Merit to 6 deserving athletes during the Closing Banquet. Their involvement and support was very much appreciated by both the participants, the Organizing Committee and Paralympics Ontario.
Since then, Shoppers HomeHealthCare, has continued to support Paralympics Ontario during the 2007 Ontario Para Provincial Summer Championship in Sarnia, and now have committed to supporting the 2008 Ontario ParaSport Summer Games at Variety Village in Toronto. In addition to this, they have gone one step further to support Paralympics Ontario's Ready Willing and Able Program, a program that travels throughout Ontario introducing Paralympic sport in rehabilitation centres, schools and community centres.
We look forward to working with ShoppersHomeHealthCare for years to come and thank them for contributing to the development of athletes with a physical disability in Ontario! |
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2008 ONTARIO PARASPORT SUMMER GAMES
 Variety Village; a long time leader in disability awareness, advocacy and active living opportunities for people with disabilities will play host to Ontario's largest multi-sport event for athletes with a physical disability in Ontario on July 25 - 27, 2008.
Variety Village has partnered with Centennial College which will become the Athlete's Village for the duration of the Games. Athletes from across the province will compete in the sports of Athletics, Boccia, Goalball, ParaEquestrian, Powerlifting & Wheelchair Tennis.
Visit the ParaSport Games website at http://www.varietyontario.ca/parasport/index.htm for frequently updated information including, maps of competition sites, registration link and much more!!!
Registration is due to open May 12, 2008. Sport schedules will be posted on the Games website following registration closing. Variety Village and Paralympics Ontario will also welcome a demonstration sport and its athletes during the Games. We look forward to meeting new athletes and assisting them is showcasing their sport.
The 2008 OPSG promise to be a first class event! |
 RWA SPRING SPECIAL
Paralympics Ontario is now booking RWA sessions for the summer. This is a great opportunity to try out a Paralympic sport in your community. We bring all the necessary equipment as well as an elite level athlete to tell their story and demonstrate the sport. These fun, interactive sessions run from 1-2 hours to half day sessions.
Sports Offered:
Athletics
Goalball
ParaAlpine Skiing
ParaNordic Skiing Sledge Hockey
Wheelchiar Basketball
Wheelchair Curling
Wheelchair Rugby
Wheelchair Tennis
If you are interested in hosting an RWA session contact Jill Valentine at (416) 426-7012 or email jill@paralympicsontario.ca
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PARALYMPICS ONTARIO HOSTS FREE COACHING CLINICS
 Paralympics Ontario recently held two free coaching clinics in conjunction with Ontario Coaches Week (April 12-20). The first clinic was held in Toronto, and with the help of CARD spotlighted Paralympics Ontario's newest summer sport, ParaEquestrian. The second coaching clinic was held in Ottawa and focused on general coaching of athletes with a physical disability.
(Right) Canada's National Men's Basketball Team Head Coach and Raptors TV personality, Leo Rautins gives some eager wheelchair basketball players a shooting lesson at the launch of Ontario Coaches Week. | |
 GAMES PROGRAM UPDATE Paralympics Ontario's Games Program has updated its policies, changed the name of the Games and is about to undergo a review through the Ministry of Health Promotion.
The 2008 Collingwood Ontario Paralympic Winter Championships were a great success and will be the last Games in Ontario to use the term "Paralympic" within a Games title. The Games will now respectively adopt the term ParaSport in place of Paralympic a term to be used solely to represent the interbational scope of sport for athletes with a physical disability. Beyond the title of the event, Paralympics Ontario has updated all Games Policies which can now be found online http://www.paralympicsontario.ca/games-policies.shtml. There have been some notable changes all of which are effective immediately. Registration and information for the summer program is online! Stay tuned!
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 WE'RE MOVING!
New Address:
3 Concorde Gate
Toronto, ON
M3C 3N7
Stay tuned for more updates to come! |
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Comments or suggestions? Let us know!
E-Newsletter
Editor: 416.426.7030
Toll Free: 1.800.265.1539
Fax: 416.426.7361
Email: matt@paralympicsontario.ca |
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