Karate Canada - 18+ National Team Athlete Agreement

WHEREAS the Athlete wishes to be an active competitor in Karate Canada’s sanctioned events with his or her rights and obligations clearly defined;

WHEREAS Karate Canada is recognized by the World Karate Federation and Sport Canada as the sole National Federation governing the sport of karate in Canada;

WHEREAS Karate Canada and the National Team Athletes recognize the need to clarify the relationship between them by establishing their respective rights and obligations;

WHEREAS the Sport Canada Athlete Assistance Program (hereinafter referred to as “the AAP”) requires these rights and obligations to be stated in a written agreement to be signed by Karate Canada and the Athlete who applies for assistance under the AAP;

AND WHEREAS the World Karate Federation requires each NSO to certify the eligibility of the National Team Athlete to compete as a member in good standing;

NOW THEREFORE the parties agree to the following:

1. Obligations of Karate Canada

Karate Canada shall:

a) organize, select and operate teams of athletes, coaches and other necessary support staff to represent Canada in the sport of karate at selected events throughout the world;

b) communicate with athletes both orally and in writing in the language of their choice (French or English);

c) publish selection criteria for all national teams at least three months before the selection for any particular team and at least eight months before the selection of major games teams (e.g., Olympic Games, Pan American Games, and World Championship Teams);

d) conduct selection of members to all national teams in a manner that is in conformity with the generally accepted principles of natural justice and procedural fairness;

e) publish NSO approved, AAP compliant criteria for the selection of Eligible Athletes to be nominated for the AAP eight (8) months before the start of the AAP eligibility cycle for the sport of karate;

f) nominate all athletes who meet AAP criteria;

g) organize programs and provide funding for the development and provision of coaching expertise and officials in Canada, in accordance with the budget of Karate Canada;

h) as capacity permits, assist the Athlete in obtaining quality medical care and advice;

i) supply the Athlete selected to be a member of the National Team Roster with the option to purchase National Team apparel at a reasonable cost, in accordance to the budget of Karate Canada;

j) regularly provide National Team program information (training and competitions) to the Athlete in the form of emailed correspondence;

k) provide a formal review of the Athlete’s annual training and competition plan and program, for the Carded athletes;

l) provide funding for the Athlete for training camps and competitions in accordance with the budget of Karate Canada and the mainstream National Team Criteria;

m) provide for a representative elected by the athletes to sit as a voting member of the Board of Directors of Karate Canada; and

n) provide an appeal procedure that is in conformity with the principles of natural justice and procedural fairness, which shall include access to an independent dispute resolution process with respect to any dispute the Athlete may have with the NSO, other than those related to the Athlete Assistance Program, and publish the details of this procedure in a prominent manner so that it is freely available to all athletes or any person requesting this information by or on behalf of the Athlete.

o) invoice athletes for costs associated to training camps and competitions in a timely manner and within 4 weeks of the completion of the event. Invoices will include a clear breakdown of all fees and costs.

2. Athlete's Obligations

2.1 The Athlete shall:

a) recognize the responsibilities of the National Team Coaches and Team Leaders / Managers (or their appointed substitutes) in coaching and team management-related decisions, and follow the training and competitive program / plan provided by the National Team Coaches or their designate, when applicable;

b) avoid living in an environment not conducive to high-performance achievements or taking any deliberate action that puts the athlete’s ability to perform at risk or limits performance;

c) provide the National Team Head Coach or designate, by email, with an annual training chart and monthly updates of changes to the chart or any other appropriate information that Karate Canada may request, as applicable;

d) subject to paragraph 2(j), participate in all mandatory training camps and competitions as described in Appendices A and B of this Agreement;

e) notify Karate Canada immediately in writing of any injury or other legitimate reason that will prevent the Athlete from participating in an upcoming event referred to in Appendix A or B of this Agreement and ensure in the case of an injury that a certificate from a medical doctor setting out the specific nature of the injury is forwarded to Karate Canada, within three weeks of the injury;

f) dress in the National Team apparel / uniform and other official clothing, if applicable and as requested, while travelling or participating as part of the National Team;

g) avoid any action or conduct that would reasonably be expected to significantly disrupt or interfere with a competition or the preparation of any Athlete for a competition;

h) For Senior athletes: during or at National Team training camps and competitions, avoid alcoholic consumption to a level that would reasonably be expected to impair the Athlete’s ability to speak, walk or drive, or cause the Athlete to behave in a disruptive manner;

i) For Junior athletes: during or at National Team training camps and competitions, refrain from alcoholic consumption altogether;

j) avoid participating in any competitions where federal government sport policy has determined that such participation is not permitted;

k) participate in sport-related, non-commercial promotional activities on behalf of the Government of Canada, if and as requested. Karate Canada usually makes such requests for participation and arranges the activities. Unless supplementary compensation is arranged, these activities do not normally involve more than two working days per athlete per year;

l) adhere to and comply with Karate Canada’s Code of Conduct, policies and appeal procedure;

m) actively participate in all AAP evaluation activities, if and as requested. Athletes will co-operate fully in any evaluation of the AAP that may be conducted by the Minister or anyone authorized to act on the Minister’s behalf and provide such data as the person conducting the evaluation considers necessary for the proper conduct of the evaluation;

n) Respect and comply with the Canadian Anti-Doping Program of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport including but not limited to:

1. avoid the use of banned substances and methods that contravene the rules of International Olympic Committee (IOC), the rules of the respective International Federation and the Canadian Anti-Doping Program;
2. submit, without prior warning, to unannounced doping-control tests in addition to other prior-notice tests and submit at other times to doping control testing when requested by the NSO, the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) or other authorities designated to do so;
   
3. avoid the possession of anabolic drugs and neither supply such drugs to others directly or indirectly nor encourage or condone their use by knowingly aiding in any effort to avoid detection of the use of banned substances or banned performance enhancing practices;

o) Junior and Senior National Team Rosters: Complete Karate Canada’s mandatory Safe Sport training including a concussion awareness course as required. Senior National Team Roster athletes only: complete the CCES on line anti-doping education program, which includes the “True Clean Sport 101” courses as required, at the beginning of the season or as soon as named onto the Senior National Team Roster.

p) respect and abide by the Canadian Anti-Doping Program (CADP) as administered by the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES); read, sign and adhere to the terms of Appendix C;

q) when using social media, avoid any messages that:

• May constitute harassment, discrimination, cyber bullying or violence;
• Are hurtful, malicious, degrading or otherwise offensive to an individual or group of individuals;
• Refer to controversial or potentially inflammatory subjects including, but not limited to, politics, sex, and religion;
• Are damaging to Karate Canada’s brand and/or relationships with our stakeholders and funding partners;
• Divulge confidential or proprietary information that belongs to Karate Canada;
• Fails to respect the privacy of others by disclosing personal information without consent.

r) pay in full invoices attributed to training camps or competitions by the required deadline. Unless otherwise agreed upon by Karate Canada on an exceptional basis, athletes owing past due outstanding amounts and invoices may not participate in subsequent Karate Canada events and activities.

(For Carded Athletes only:)

s) complete and submit biweekly training logs and reports to Karate Canada-appointed National Team Coaches, as requested, and agree to make use of services provided by Canadian Sports Centres (sports psychology / mental preparation, physical preparation, massage, physiotherapy, nutritionist services, etc.) as recommended and required by these appointed National Team Coaches;

t) complete the CCES online anti-doping education program’s two courses “True Sport Clean” and “Sport Canada - Athlete Assistance Program” at the beginning of each new carding cycle. Failure to do so will result in AAP payments being kept on hold until requirement is met.

3. Default of Agreement

a) Where one of the parties to this agreement is of the opinion that the other party has failed to conform with its obligations under this agreement, the following shall occur forthwith:

i) The one party shall notify the other party in writing of the particulars of the alleged default.

ii) If there exists a reasonable opportunity to correct the default and the default is not so fundamental as to amount to a repudiation of this agreement, the notifying party shall indicate in the notice the steps to be taken to remedy the default and a reasonable period of time to complete the remedial steps.

iii) The parties agree that the giving of the above referred-to notice by a party will not prevent that party from later asserting that the default was so fundamental as to amount to a repudiation of this agreement.

b) If the party receiving the notice remedies the breach within the specified time, the dispute shall be considered resolved and neither party shall have any recourse against the other concerning the matter alleged to comprise the default. If the party receiving the notice fails to remedy the breach within the specified time and either party wishes recourse against the other concerning the matters alleged to comprise the default, that party shall use the dispute settlement mechanism of this agreement to resolve the differences between the parties.

Duration of Agreement

This Agreement comes into force on July 8th, 2024 and terminates on April 6th, 2025.

All participants must complete the consent form for the Universal Code of Conduct for the Prevention and Awareness of Maltreatment in Sport, available at the following link: https://sportconsent.ca/.

PLEASE INDICATE "KARATE CANADA" AS YOUR SIGNATORY ORGANIZATION.

ATHLETE OBLIGATIONS AND CONSENT PERTAINING TO

CANADIAN ANTI-DOPING PROGRAM (CADP):

Athlete:

I understand that my national sport organization, Karate Canada, has adopted the 2023 Canadian Anti-Doping Program (CADP).

• I specifically agree that as a member of the National Athlete Pool (NAP) in my sport, I am subject to the CADP and accordingly shall be bound by all the anti-doping rules and responsibilities contained in the CADP.
• I agree that I have been educated regarding the anti-doping rules and violations contained in the CADP.
• I acknowledge that information, including personal information about me, can be shared between anti-doping organizations for anti-doping purposes and such information will be used only in a fashion that is fully consistent with the limitations and restrictions contained in the World Anti-Doping Agency’s International Standard for the Protection of Privacy and Personal Information.
• With the understanding that any disclosure is for the sole purpose of assisting the CCES in enforcement of the CADP, I consent to having police and law enforcement agencies, border services agencies, Sport Organizations of which I am a member and sporting clubs and athletic associations to which I belong, in Canada and elsewhere, disclose to the CCES information in their possession relating to me that is directly relevant to potential anti-doping rule violations contained in the CADP that may be asserted against me.

By signing this Athlete Agreement and Appendix, I acknowledge that I agree with and remain subject to the clauses outlined above until such a time as I am removed from the NAP.

KARATE CANADA’S COMPETITIONS &

TRAINING FOR THE SENIOR NATIONAL TEAM ROSTER ATHLETES

Karate Canada is carefully following the coronavirus pandemic's evolution on the global and domestic level and selecting athletes to participate in training camps and represent Canada at international competitions. During the continued course of the pandemic, Karate Canada will work conduct its high-performance program with agility and flexibility while putting the best interests of athlete wellness and safety and achieving performance objectives in the fore front.

Here is a (non-exhaustive) list of the mandatory and possible events which Senior National Team Roster athletes may be selected and invited to participate in during the course of the 2022 competitive season:

A.1 Competitions for Senior National Team Roster Athletes*:

A.1.1. Participation in international and domestic competitions to be announced, as applicable.

( *Exact dates and locations to be confirmed.)

A.2 Training Camps /Sessions

In order to remain members in good standing of the 2022-23 National Team Roster, athletes who will be invited must take part in the planned training camps (exact dates and locations to be confirmed) will make every attempt to do so.

Additionally, for National Team Roster member athletes residing in Ontario and in Quebec, participation in (one to two-day long) Training Camps is strongly recommended** (final dates and exact location to be announced).

Furthermore, invitational Regional Trainings will be offered in the following two regions **:

• BC/ Western Regional Trainings*** (one to two-day long; to be held in the Vancouver area - final dates and exact location to be announced):
• Atlantic Provinces Regional Trainings – Kumite only*** (one-to-two day long camps planned; exact dates and venues will be confirmed later)

**= Please note that this requirement applies, in the case of Ontario-Quebec Inter-Regional Trainings, only to invited athletes residing within 300km of the designated training venue, and in the case of all other Regional Trainings, only to invited athletes residing within 200 km of the designated training venue.

*** = Participation in these Regional Training Sessions will be mandatory for all invited Senior National Team kumite athletes residing in (or representing, at National Championships) the province of British Columbia (for BC Regional Trainings), or residing in (or representing, at National Championships) either New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia or Newfoundland / Labrador (for Atlantic Regional Trainings), if residing within 200 km of the designated training venue.

KARATE CANADA’S REQUIRED COMPETITIONS

& TRAINING FOR THE CARDED ATHLETES

Here is the list of the mandatory and possible events which Carded athletes may be invited and selected to participate in during the course of the 2021-2022 competitive season:

B.1. Mandatory Competitions*:

Participation in the following event(s) is mandatory for all athletes Carded by Sport Canada (AAP) for the 2022-2023 cycle, if invited and eligible (while participation in all other targeted yet optional competitions is also strongly recommended):

B.1.1. Participation in additional international and domestic competitions to be announced, as applicable.

(*= Exact dates and locations to be confirmed)

Please note that participation in additional events may be required with sufficient advance notice (min 8 weeks).

B.2. Training Camps /Sessions

All Carded athletes must take part in all of the mandatory training camps that they will be invited to as National Team Roster athletes (see Appendix A).

Failure to meet the requirements for Carded athletes may result in Karate Canada recommending to Sport Canada that an athlete no longer benefit from AAP support.