Ontario Artistic Swimming (OAS) is pleased to announce a significant new investment in the future of artistic swimming in Ontario through the generous support of the Bruce H. Mitchell Foundation.
The Foundation has committed $250,000 over two years — $125,000 annually — to support a series of initiatives designed to strengthen athlete pathways, expand adaptive and inclusive programming, develop coaches and officials, and build greater capacity across Ontario’s artistic swimming community.
What makes this investment particularly meaningful is how the opportunity began.
The Foundation’s interest in OAS was sparked by the work already underway within our organization, particularly our efforts to create more inclusive athlete pathways and expand opportunities for adaptive athletes. Those initial conversations grew into an opportunity for OAS to think more broadly about how a significant investment could benefit not just one program or group of athletes, but the artistic swimming system across Ontario.
OAS developed a proposal focused on maximizing that opportunity and directing the investment toward areas where it could remove barriers, create new opportunities, and provide meaningful support to our member Clubs and the people who make our sport possible.
We are incredibly grateful to the Bruce H. Mitchell Foundation for recognizing the work being done within Ontario Artistic Swimming and for sharing our belief in what is possible when we invest in athletes, coaches, officials, and Clubs.
What This Investment Will Make Possible
Over the next two seasons, the Foundation’s investment will support a number of initiatives that will directly benefit the OAS community:
Reinstatement of the Junior and Adapted Provincial Teams
Funding will support the return of both provincial teams in 2027, helping reduce athlete costs while supporting the coaching, planning, and program delivery required to provide meaningful provincial pathway opportunities.
Year-Round Adaptive Athlete Programming
OAS will expand adaptive programming beyond a seasonal provincial team model by creating consistent year-round training opportunities. Approved adaptive athletes will be able to participate in OAS programming without OAS program fees, providing greater access to training, development, and integration within the broader provincial pathway.
Adaptive Equipment and Inclusion Supports
New shared adaptive equipment and training supports will be purchased for use across OAS programming and to support inclusive opportunities at the Club level, giving coaches and athletes greater access to the tools required to deliver safe and effective adaptive programming.
Emerging Athlete Development Subsidies
Funding will allow OAS to subsidize 50% of eligible OAS development programming fees for identified emerging athletes with the potential to progress toward Team Ontario and national pathways, helping ensure that cost does not become a barrier to continued development.
Coach Certification Support
One of the most direct benefits to member Clubs will be significant new financial support for coach development. OAS will establish a Coach Certification Support Fund to reduce or eliminate certification costs across the coaching pathway, from AquaGO and Regional League through Comp Intro, Competition Development, and advanced coaching opportunities.
NCCP Multi-Sport Training Support
In addition to artistic swimming-specific certification, funding will be available to reimburse eligible NCCP multi-sport modules that are required as coaches progress through the certification pathway. Together, these investments will help Clubs recruit new coaches, advance existing coaches, and build greater coaching capacity.
Adaptive and Inclusive Coaching Education
OAS will provide adaptive and inclusive coaching education to OAS coaches and Clubs at no cost, along with additional workshops, resources, and practical tools designed to help more Clubs confidently welcome adaptive athletes into their programs.
Officials Recruitment and Training
Funding will also remove the cost of Level 1 officials certification for new officials, helping OAS and our member Clubs recruit parents, former athletes, coaches, and volunteers into officiating and strengthen the officials pathway that is essential to delivering competitions across the province.
Investing Back Into Our Sport
Together, these initiatives represent $75,000 annually directed toward athlete and adaptive programming and $50,000 annually toward coach and officials development.
While some of the benefits will be delivered directly through OAS programming, the impact is intended to reach much further.
Reducing coach certification costs helps Clubs build their coaching teams. Developing more officials strengthens our ability to deliver quality competitions. Providing adaptive education and resources gives more Clubs the tools to expand inclusive programming in their own communities. Supporting emerging athletes strengthens the pathway from Club programming to provincial and national opportunities.
Ultimately, this investment allows OAS to put additional resources back into the sport in ways that strengthen our member Clubs and create more opportunities for the athletes, coaches, officials, and volunteers they serve.
It also represents an important recognition of the direction our sport is moving. The Foundation’s investment was attracted by work that was already happening within OAS; its support now gives us the opportunity to accelerate that work and expand its reach across the province.
What’s Next
OAS staff have been working to develop the implementation processes required to roll out each of these opportunities effectively and ensure that the Foundation’s investment creates measurable and lasting impact.
Detailed information on each initiative, including eligibility, timelines, and the process for accessing funding or participating in the various opportunities, will be shared with Clubs and members as each initiative is launched.
We look forward to sharing those details over the coming weeks and months — and, just as importantly, to sharing the stories and impact that come from this investment over the next two years.
On behalf of Ontario Artistic Swimming and our entire membership, we extend our sincere thanks to the Bruce H. Mitchell Foundation for its confidence in OAS, its generosity, and its investment in the future of artistic swimming in Ontario.
Melissa Wolk
Executive Director
Ontario Artistic Swimming