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CTV News
39 minutes ago
- CTV News
‘So thankful': Canadians preparing to play in 2025 Homeless World Cup in Norway
For the first time in a decade, Canada will be sending a soccer team to the 2025 Homeless World Cup. The tournament, which runs from Aug. 23 to 30, will be hosted in Oslo, Norway. It will see eight soccer players from across British Columbia, Quebec and Ontario – and a team of volunteers – head overseas to don maple leaf jerseys. 'There are 48 nations being represented with 63 teams and over 500 players who are all homeless or have experienced homelessness,' head coach Ashley Fraser said. 'So, it's a big, big year for Canada.' Fraser says her team reflects resilience, community and the power of sport. They have been practicing with their local street soccer leagues and meeting online with each other to discuss strategy ahead of the opening ceremonies. 'We've had a few team calls, and hearing their excitement and their passion is just so amazing,' Fraser told CTV News. 'Everyone is so thankful.' Midfielder May Nakintu echoes the sentiment. She recently immigrated from Uganda and says she was over the moon to be chosen for the team. 'I even up to now at times have to check myself and ask myself if this is a dream,' she said. 'I feel so nice and wholesome. I believe that dreams come true.' Nakintu and the rest of her teammates all come from the Canadian Street Soccer Association, which has chapters across the country. Its goal is to use sport as a tool for inclusion and empowerment — and to draw attention to housing and poverty issues in Canada. Social worker Marleen Dorrestijn volunteers with the Calgary league. 'We all come together every Saturday for two hours, and we get to kind of put everything else aside and just play together, laugh together and build that community,' she said. 'For folks that have traditionally been excluded in our society and faced hardships, to have a place where they can belong and feel like they're a part of a team and feel like they're accomplishing something: I would think we would wish that upon everybody.' 'My favourite part is having friends to talk to, going out there every week,' Nakintu added. To follow Team Canada's Homeless World Cup journey — and to watch them play — visit
CBC
40 minutes ago
- CBC
TikTok Canada is closing soon. The Beaches and bbno$ warn it will hurt homegrown artists
In 2021, a TikTok of Canadian rapper bbno$ raising his eyebrows to the beat of his single "Edamame" started gaining traction — and eventually changed the course of his career. The platform's Canadian team suggested he recreate the clip with a safari-themed filter, then helped push it globally. "When that happened, the song just skyrocketed," he says of the track, which features Indonesian rapper Rich Brian and went six-times Platinum in various countries. bbno$ is among several Canadian artists worried about losing social media support that can make or break their careers as TikTok prepares to comply with a federal order to shut down its operations in Canada. For Canadian musicians, TikTok can be as vital as radio play once was. Its algorithm lets songs leap borders instantly, offering emerging acts — especially racialized artists facing barriers in traditional channels — a shot at global reach. With Ottawa's dissolution order set to take effect soon, TikTok Canada's team has been running campaigns to show its value — and Canadian artists are rallying behind them. "Being an artist in this generation is like, you're basically a TikTokker," says the Juno-winning rapper, born Alexander Gumuchian. "Without having a TikTok team that I can relay information to — that could help me get banners, help me when things are starting to bubble — I'm losing ammunition to help fire my career up." Concerns around access to user data behind government's move In November 2024, Ottawa ordered TikTok's Canadian arm to dissolve following a national security review of its Chinese parent company, ByteDance Ltd., though the app will remain accessible in Canada. The order cited "national security risks" but a government spokesperson declined to provide specifics due to "confidentiality provisions." Social media researcher Philip Mai says there are concerns around potential Chinese government access to user data, foreign surveillance of Canadians in sensitive sectors and misuse of information for propaganda. "China's National Intelligence Law legally permits data access, raising plausible risk concerns," says the co-director of the Social Media Lab at the Ted Rogers School of Management. Canada has ordered TikTok's offices closed. Should you still be on the app? 10 months ago The federal government has ordered TikTok to close its offices in Canada because of national security concerns. CBC's Ashley Fraser explains what we know and don't know about that risk. Still, no public evidence shows TikTok has shared user data with the Chinese government, and the company denies it. Mai says shutting down TikTok Canada reduces its physical and legal presence in the country, limiting the platform's potential for data surveillance and its ability to influence policy or public opinion. "This strategy is less extreme than banning TikTok, but more than a slap on the wrist," he says. bbno$ says the platform's Canadian team has helped bolster his social media presence. Without it, he warns, many Canadian artists will face a "bottleneck" in their careers. Juno-winning Toronto band The Beaches says TikTok Canada has been "instrumental" in their rise. "Without local teams championing Canadian musicians internationally, we're left competing with American artists as outsiders, not as domestic talent," says the group in a statement. "This puts us at a disadvantage and pushes Canadian artists to leave the country just to have a shot at global success." Though The Beaches have enjoyed Canadian radio airplay for years, their single "Blame Brett" went viral on TikTok in 2023, helping them reach the U.S. Billboard charts for the first time. Mai warns TikTok Canada's closure would be a "big blow to Canadian artists," reducing opportunities, support systems, grant programs and sponsorships. "Forcing the closure of TikTok's Canadian operation will likely decrease Canadian visibility in the algorithm," he says, noting local staff often boost regional content via tailored campaigns, including ones highlighting Indigenous creators. Last month, TikTok CEO Steven Chew asked Minister of Industry Melanie Joly for an urgent meeting, warning that shutting down TikTok Canada would force layoffs, halt investments and pull support from creators and culture. "The wind-up process is rapidly approaching a critical juncture," Chew wrote. TikTok declined to provide a date and to say whether it has heard back from Joly, who did not respond to questions about the meeting request. Loss for racialized alum of TikTok's Accelerator program, creators say The platform recently withdrew sponsorships for several Canadian arts institutions, including the Juno Awards and TIFF, and slashed the National Screen Institute's TikTok Accelerator for Indigenous Creators, which has supported nearly 400 participants since 2021. Indigenous hoop dancer James Jones says the federal government's shutdown order shows a disregard for the country's digital creators. "It's really unfortunate that they are taking away a team that has been so supportive of the BIPOC community and the Indigenous community," says the Edmonton-based creator, who boasts over four million followers. "I don't think that anyone has ever asked us what we wanted or even reached out and said, `Hey, how is this going to affect you?"' Jones says early in his career, TikTok Canada offered advice on maximizing his reach and facilitating key connections with brands and publications. He says its Accelerator program has helped many Indigenous creators and small businesses. Jones feels the government is sending a message that "we're not being prioritized." "They don't care what happens to us, they don't care about our businesses, our brands," he says. "They don't care about how it affects us personally to not have access to a team that supports us directly." Vanessa Brousseau, an advocate for missing and murdered Indigenous people, says the government's decision feels "really painful, but familiar." "It feels like a pattern and a way of oppressing minorities, oppressing Indigenous people," says the alum of the TikTok Accelerator for Indigenous Creators. "TikTok is the only platform that amplifies our voices and makes sure we're being heard." Brousseau worries that if the decision isn't reversed, it will be "very detrimental" to Indigenous TikTok creators.
CBC
40 minutes ago
- CBC
Gavin Baggs of Paradise clinches N.L.'s first gold medal of Canada Summer Games
Gavin Baggs secured Newfoundland and Labrador's first gold medal of the Canada Summer Games Tuesday evening — and his second medal of the Games. The Paradise resident was the first person to cross the finish line in the men's 1,500-metre wheelchair race. "It was an unexpected result with the wind and the rain today," Baggs said in a statement. "In the end, I just put my head down, focused on what was ahead of me, and raced my heart out. To walk away with a gold for Team N.L. is an absolute honour." A multi-sport athlete, Baggs is competing in his fourth Canada Games. The 18-year-old also secured the province's first medal of the Games when he won silver in the men's 400-metre freestyle Para race last week. According to the Canada Summer Games medal table, Newfoundland and Labrador has now won one gold medal, two silvers and a bronze. Mark Miller is the head coach for athletics with Team N.L. He said Baggs worked hard leading up to the Games, and wanted to earn medals for the province. "Very little was going to get in the way of that today — certainly not 60-kilometre winds. We're proud to have him representing Team N.L. this week," Miller said in a statement. Baggs' mother, Raeleen Baggs, was watching Tuesday's race and said she felt "over the moon." "It's been a long two weeks, and a couple more days left, but so exciting," she said. "It's just been incredible to watch him the last two weeks in the Games." She said the 1,500-metre wheelchair race was tight in the first few laps, but her son pulled ahead later in the race, and during the last lap he "took off." She said he doesn't tend to get nervous about competing, and that helps to her keep calm, too. Baggs is scheduled to compete again on Friday in the men's 100-metre wheelchair heat race.
