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Globe and Mail
30-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Canadian Deaflympic athletes face $100,000 shortfall, jeopardizing upcoming competition
In between shuttling her two sons back and forth to rep hockey and working two jobs, Kimberly Summers somehow finds the time to train for her own sport, as a decorated player on the Canada deaf women's volleyball team. But with the quadrennial Summer Deaflympics fast approaching in November, Summers now has something else to worry about: funding. The Canadian Deaf Sports Association (CDSA) is hoping to send a delegation of 48 athletes to the event, which is being held in Tokyo, but this week announced that it needs to raise $100,000 by October to be able to do so. With the CDSA having committed to pay for 50 per cent of each athlete's costs for travel and accommodation, it's on each competitor to make up the shortfall. 'It's very stressful, not only mentally, emotionally, obviously financially,' Summers said through an interpreter. 'I have to spend money out of my own pocket for training, for team fees, for equipment. 'Seventy-five per cent of my travel I'm paying for, it's like, 'Why am I paying out of pocket to compete at this level and represent my country?'' Summers, who was born deaf, is originally from Waterford, Ont., and is set to compete at her fifth Deaflympics. The 43-year-old works at a Sportchek store and as a student support councillor at a deaf school in Milton, Ont. However, she recognizes that a lot of her fellow Canadian competitors have to borrow money from family and friends to make it out to these big international events, which also include world championships and Pan Am Games for the Deaf. 'I've been involved since 2001 and we have to fundraise every event that we go to,' Summers said. 'It's a real struggle.' Despite the financial burden – which has seen a few competitors drop out of this year's Deaflympics – Summers said the experiences that she has had playing volleyball have been vital to her self-esteem, allowing her to show that she can do whatever nondeaf people can do. She has played on both hearing and deaf teams since she started playing as a teenager, but has found that communication has been a problem on hearing teams. 'I struggled in life, being deaf, with isolation, being the only deaf person in a hearing world,' she said. 'So volleyball, playing on a team, was my way to socialize and feel like I'm a part of something.' Her career highlight at the Deaflympics was undoubtedly 2017 in Samsun, Turkey, when Summers was selected as Canada's flag bearer for the opening ceremony. 'Something about 2017 and being the flag bearer, it had such an impact on me,' she said. 'And I felt like we were getting equal recognition at the Olympic level as hearing athletes do.' There are multiple reasons for the funding shortfall. The fact that Canada is sending its largest delegation in at least 20 years is one, as is the high cost of living in Tokyo, with hotel rooms running between $500 and $700 per night. Donald Prong, the president of the board of directors of the CDSA, said that there are some federal grants that provide funding, but they make up only a very small portion of what is required. One of the biggest problems, he said, is a lack of awareness in this country, particularly in contrast to a quadrennial event like the Paralympics. 'The Paralympics, they get a lot of funding,' he said through an interpreter. 'The media is always supporting them. So there is a bit of opportunity that we miss there that people aren't aware of the Deaflympics as much as the Paralympics.' Another hurdle that deaf people have to overcome, he said, is the belief that they should simply hold their events at the Paralympics. However, not only does the Deaflympics predate the Paralympics – it started in 1924 while the first Paralympics was held in 1960 – but Prong added that the Paralympics are for people that require adaptations. If a deaf person were to compete in the Paralympics, they would only qualify for two events with the adaptations that are involved. In comparison, Canada will compete in nine events in Tokyo this year. 'The Deaflympics, it's a deaf space,' he said. 'So there's language fluency, culture, socialization – even the officials are all deaf.' Both Summers and Prong are hoping that corporate Canada can step up and help get its athletes over to Tokyo to represent the country. 'We have the skill set that hearing volleyball players have,' Summers said. 'We deserve this opportunity to experience the inclusivity of Deaflympics or deaf competing events. We are at that same level as hearing athletes.'
Independent Singapore
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Independent Singapore
Questions raised after Ong Ye Kung and Chee Hong Tat issued statement saying they don't know Fujian gang member Su Haijin
SINGAPORE: Health Minister Ong Ye Kung and Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat issued a joint statement after pictures were posted online of them together with Su Haijin , who was among the 10 foreign nationals arrested in August 2023 in a Singapore-wide raid connected to the biggest money-laundering case in the history of the city-state. On Apr 4, 2024, Su was convicted and sentenced to 14 months' imprisonment for one count of resistance to lawful apprehension and two counts of money laundering under Section 55 of the CDSA. The photos were posted late on Monday night (May 5) on the Instagram account of Charles Yeo, the former chairman of the Reform Party. On Tuesday morning, Mr Ong posted a copy of the statement that he and Mr Chee's press secretaries issued. On Facebook, he acknowledged the pictures showing him and Mr Chee at dinners where Su Haijin had also been present. ' As ministers, they meet a diverse range of people at various events and gatherings. They attended the dinners at the invitation of a friend, and Su happened to be there. Minister Ong recalls that months later, at another dinner, Su happened to be there too,' the statement reads. It clarified, however, that neither Mr Chee nor Mr Ong personally knows Su, nor have they had any 'contact or dealings with him, before or since these occasions.' 'The PAP government upholds a high standard of integrity and the ministers are determined to uphold this, even though in the course of their work, they may inadvertently come into contact with people who are later established to be unsavoury. Maintaining this standard is non-negotiable,' the statement adds. FB sreengrab/Ong Ye Kung There is also a picture of Jalan Kayu Single Member Constituency (SMC) Member of Parliament-elect Ng Chee Meng, who is also the Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress, together with Su. This photo has not been officially verified, however , and according to CNA, Mr Ng has yet to respond to a request for comment. Online, many have acknowledged that government officials attend many social events where attendees regularly request photo opportunities with them. Preventing this is virtually impossible, some argued. Some commended Mr Ong and Mr Chee for issuing a clarification so quickly. The latest on his Facebook account, posted at 1:00 pm on May 6, is an announcement that he will be starting Meet-the-People sessions at Jalan Kayu on Friday (May 9). /TISG Read also: 'You started it' — Ong Ye Kung draws flak as he calls for an end to comments about candidates 'abandoning' former wards
CBC
31-03-2025
- Health
- CBC
Consumption and treatment sites in Kitchener and Guelph will close this week despite injunction being granted
A judge has ruled the consumption and treatment services (CTS) sites in Kitchener and Guelph can stay open. But the win in an Ontario Superior Court doesn't mean the local sites will stay open beyond Monday — the day the province has said they must close by. Sanguen Health Centre, which operates the Kitchener site, said in a social media post on Sunday that they will close. There are two reasons why, the post said. One is because the site's exemption under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act expires on Tuesday. The other is that there is no funding to remain open. "We find the judge's acknowledgement of the potential harm caused by these closures hopeful," the statement said. "However, the situation is complex. The absence of provincial funding and the expiration of our CDSA exemption present significant barriers to maintaining services." Melissa Kwiatkowski, CEO of the Guelph Community Health Centre which operates the CTS in Guelph, confirmed they are unable to extend CTS services beyond Monday. "The government has been clear they will not fund the [CTS] site and will withhold funding from organizations that continue to operate," Kwiatkowski said in an email to CBC News on Sunday. Last week, advocates from Toronto and Waterloo region took the province to court over the decision to close CTS sites across Ontario. They sought an injunction to stop the closures on March 31, a deadline set by the province. They also argued closing the sites violates both the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Constitution, including the right to life, liberty and security of the person. On Friday afternoon, Justice John Callaghan of the Superior Court of Justice granted an injunction until he could make a decision on the Charter challenge, which he said will take more time to decide. A spokesperson for Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones said the ruling doesn't change the province's plans to replace the CTS sites with homelessness and addictions recovery treatment (HART) hubs. "Provincial funding for HART Hubs cannot be used for drug injection services and will be contingent on the organization not seeking to continue those services," Hannah Jensen said in a statement on Friday. Diana Chan McNally, a Toronto community worker and expert in harm reduction, told CBC Toronto"even though we are not illegal at this moment, it does mean that we will most likely lose services" because of the lack of funding. Kwiatkowski said the team at the Guelph Community Health Centre "continues with the difficult work of preparing our community for Guelph's CTS service to close on March 31st while we operationalize the government's new HART Hub model." "Over the last seven months, we have worked diligently with many partners in our community to ensure this program provides urgent help to those who need it. Our HART hub will have some services available as of the 1st of April," Kwiatkowski said. "While this is not a replacement for [a consumption and treatment site], it does have promise, and we want it to be a success for our community." CTS closure a 'significant' loss: Sanguen The site in Kitchener is the only one in Waterloo region. It has operated since 2019 on Duke Street W. near Kitchener's city hall and has offered people a space to use drugs with staff on-site, as well as other support services. Sanguen has run the site on behalf of the region and reports there has never been a death at the site from an overdose. Staff intervened to prevent an overdose more than 1,000 times since 2019. In 2024, the site saw more than 15,000 client visits and managed 79 on-site overdoses. In its post on Sunday, Sanguen said the organization "remains absolutely committed to re-establishing fully funded and legally exempt supervised consumption facilities in our community." "These services are integral to harm reduction efforts aimed at mitigating overdose risks and are a fundamental component of the health care we believe everyone is entitled to," the statement said. Sanguen said they would reopen immediately "if we had the necessary exemption, facility and funding." Advocates who are part of the Waterloo Region Drug Action Team are hoping to convince local politicians to find that funding. In a letter sent to Waterloo region's MPPs and regional councillors on Sunday, and shared with CBC News, the drug action team urged the politicians to help keep the site in Kitchener open. "One of the applicants in the court challenge is a resident of Waterloo region. The court has accepted the high risk of death and injury to CTS clients should CTS sites close, including the risk of death to the Waterloo region applicant. We do not want your constituent, or other CTS clients, to die," the letters said. "The lives of constituents locally and beyond very much hang in the balance. Time is of the essence, obviously, and the community is unclear about how area MPPs are facilitating an emergency response." HART hubs to open Tuesday The province announced in August 2024 it would close consumption and treatment sites it deemed were too close to schools or daycares. The sites in Kitchener and Guelph will be replaced by HART hubs, with HART standing for homelessness and addiction recovery treatment. The biggest difference will be that drugs will not be allowed inside HART hubs. That means people cannot use or have drugs tested on site. In Kitchener, the HART Hub will be located at 44 Francis Street S. and will be operated by the organization Community Healthcaring Kitchener-Waterloo. It is still slated to open on Tuesday with provincial funding. It will offer services including mental health, addictions, transition beds and help with housing, identification and employment. In Guelph, the HART Hub will remain at the Guelph Community Health Centre, although staff say not all services will be available right away as the provincial funding is worked out. Kwiatkowski previously told CBC News services like crisis and withdrawal recovery beds and supportive housing units will be placed on hold for now. "I know how much we asked for, but we don't know how much we're getting," she said in an Interview with CBC News. "We can't spend money we don't have." In an email to CBC News, Ontario's Ministry of Health said it continues to work with HART Hub partners to collect information for their multi-year budgets. The Ontario government is investing $529 million to create a total of 27 hubs across the province. Nine of those hubs are expected to be open by Tuesday.
