At a race last month, a friend mentioned that the Triathlon Canada CEO hired in September of last year was let go in May. I just finally got here to Slowtwitch to see if anything had been posted about it and noticed that it hadn’t.
At a time when the sport needs leadership from the top down and through its provincial triathlon bodies, this doesn’t bode well for the triathlon in Canada. All of this change must have made it difficult to maintain the strategic direction and deliverables of the Strategic Plan, particularly around funding and morale to name a few areas.
Are there unrealistic expectations of the TRICAN Board? Unrealistic expectations of the CEO role?
Is it a broken system where each Provincial body runs its own shop, gets its own funding, and has minimal requirements to meet the national governing body’s mandate, and is more concerned with its own?
Is the organizational structure within the organization in need of change?
The provincial jurisdictions do a swell job of keeping things going at that level. Does the sport even need a top? Could likely be managed by a well organized provincial council.
The provincial jurisdictions do a swell job of keeping things going at that level. Does the sport even need a top? Could likely be managed by a well organized provincial council.
I am not sure what Triathlon Canada even does anymore. I was a member for around 30 years through Ontario Association of Triathletes literally from 1989 to 2019 but since then did not get mine, because it felt like charity with no utility. I just pay my Ontario “one day” fees to cover race day insurance like I pay USAT one day fees and if I recall correctly Quebec would make me pay one day fees fees too, so I just stopped.
What is Triathlon Canada’s role that the provincial federations do not do? Speaking of which when do you get into Penticton for IMC weekend?
Howdy. Some questions we can chew on when you arrive…ill be in Penticton about the 20th.
OK I get into Penticton the afternoon of 22 Aug. Just booked my flights. This will be a blast. Yeah, Shepley for Triathlon Canada Prez would be useful. I think he has a good grasp of all corners of the sport in this country from grassroots to high performance over all distances and perhaps a leadership that has touched all the stakeholder groups is what Canada needs. But not sure Barry would want to do that at this phase of life (I could be dead wrong).
Barrie is the only one I would trust with the keys at this point.
The job description specifically states career sport administration bureaucrat wanted and i cringe. Yes, need to understand the bureaucracy of getting government funding and playing nice to the IOC, but what TRICAN also needs more, is a business focus P&L.
First 3 things i would do:
Hire agency on commissions basis with a lucrative return for agency on sponsorship deals closed (vs up front expense to Trican)
inform high performance there will be no such thing as domestique spots. Earn your way into Olympics. Clear pathway how to do so. And actually send top tier team of athletes to mix relay qualifiers (unlike 2024) so we get full team representation
Most importantly pay appropriately Joel Filliol to run HP and allow his squad in parallel. He is the best of the best IMO.
Barrie is the only one I would trust with the keys at this point.
The job description specifically states career sport administration bureaucrat wanted and i cringe. Yes, need to understand the bureaucracy of getting government funding and playing nice to the IOC, but what TRICAN also needs more, is a business focus P&L.
First 3 things i would do:
Hire agency on commissions basis with a lucrative return for agency on sponsorship deals closed (vs up front expense to Trican)
inform high performance there will be no such thing as domestique spots. Earn your way into Olympics. Clear pathway how to do so. And actually send top tier team of athletes to mix relay qualifiers (unlike 2024) so we get full team representation
Most importantly pay appropriately Joel Filliol to run HP and allow his squad in parallel. He is the best of the best IMO.
This off top of my head.
I’m not Canadian, nor live in Canada or north America for that matter, but I have seen quite a few situations where national federations hire a high profile (whether he’s great at what he does well - coaching - is not relevant unfortunately for this particular role) coach to run or lead their HP program. It never really works. You need someone in place that understands what the coaches and athletes need in terms of support, but who doesn’t have skin in the game (doesn’t coach athletes themselves anymore, at least not athletes of that country at the top level).
This is what France, Germany, UK do. And they’re the most successful. Those who try the other way, Australia, etc, have failed for the most part. I can’t stress this more: you need a HP director who supports all the coaches/training environments that the HP program needs to support to put all athletes (developing and already there) in the best conditions to succeed. Not favour anyone over anybody else.