Articles by author: Brock University

• Researchers call for co-ordination of Ontario’s ‘fragmented’ sport system

  Wednesday, May 20, 2026 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE — MAY 20, 2026 — R0045

  Ontario’s sport system needs to become more professional, collaborative and organized so that access to fun, safe sport is open to all, says the lead researcher on a cross-organizational report calling for change.

  “There’s a chorus of voices getting louder and more consistent that things aren’t working well, and we need to make some changes if we want community sport to be effectively run,” says Brock University Associate Professor of Sport Management Kyle Rich.

  The Ontario Sport Summit Report, released May 19, outlines how sport is being delivered in the province in the face of increased challenges, says Rich.

  Sport at the community level in Ontario is provided by a system of non-profit and commercial organizations, including community sport clubs, training academies and sport-for-development initiatives. They are also supported by provincial organizations and public institutions, such as school boards and municipal recreation departments.

  Most provinces have a government-funded provincial multi-sport organization — for example, Sport Nova Scotia — that oversees governance, offers training and ensures compliance with government regulations, among other activities.

  Several major changes have occurred in the Ontario sport system in recent years, such as the implementation of Rowan’s Law to prevent and manage concussions, changes to the way non-profit sport organizations need to be incorporated and requirements to increase accessibility and inclusion in sport.

  However, Ontario still lacks a centralized, consistent support to guide sport delivery in the province, Rich says.

  “This means the system is becoming fragmented,” he says. “Some organizations dutifully align with governance expectations and strategic directions, while others do not.”

  Not all organizations are following expectations, Rich says, and “there is no way to ensure that checks and balances are in place to protect sport participants and ensure they have quality sport experiences.”

  With funding from the Government of Canada’s Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), Rich and his team in Brock’s Sport and Recreation Policy Lab have been studying sport policy implementation processes across Canada and compared that to the Ontario government’s support of the province’s sport sector.

  Rich and his partners from the MLSE LaunchPad, the Ontario Sport Network and the University of Toronto then hosted the Ontario Sport Summit late last year, which brought together more than 160 representatives from a wide range of Ontario sport organizations to examine the present and future of sport in Ontario.

  Their discussions revolved around three themes: system leadership, co-ordination and sustainable investment; sport access and lifelong participation; and safe, inclusive and holistic sport.

  The resulting Ontario Sport Community Summit Report 2026 summarizes key points and makes several recommendations for sport groups and government, including:

  • Establish coalitions of school boards, municipalities, sport organizations and youth and social service agencies in efforts to lobby and advocate for sport, show the value of participation to the public and improve access to sport facilities and quality sport experiences.
  • Develop creative strategies to create new investments for sport infrastructure and programming.
  • Make sport participation more accessible across the lifespan by offering opportunities beyond traditional venues and increasing awareness of various sport programs that attract diverse participants.
  • Disseminate research knowledge to administrators, coaches, parents and communities to enhance the quality of sport delivery and increase participation.
  • Connect safe sport policies to heath, education, social services and other sectors that can support shared goals and ensure that the Universal Code of Conduct for Maltreatment in Sport is implemented and enforced throughout the sport system.

  Rich says the issue is not just academic. Ontario has more than 33,400 community sport organizations and one in seven Ontarians serve as a coach. The sport sector in the province generates $7.6 billion in gross domestic product.

  But the benefits of Ontario’s non-profit sport system extend far beyond the numbers, says Rich.

  “Many people say their sport and physical activity programs are the things that connect them to their community,” he says. “They build all kinds of friendships and social connections, contributing to their well-being and health. Sport is an important sector for the social, cultural and economic well-being of Ontario.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  *Maryanne St. Denis, Associate Director, Strategic Communications, Brock University, [email protected] or 905-246-0256

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  Categories: Media releases

• FIFA should hit pause on afternoon World Cup matches, says Brock heat expert

  Wednesday, May 20, 2026 | By Brock University

  EXPERT ADVISORY — MAY 20, 2026 — R0044

  If soccer’s superstars seem sluggish during June and July’s FIFA World Cup 2026, it might be because they’re hitting the pitch at the wrong time of day.

  With 2026 expected to be one of the hottest years on record, and experts raising concerns about player well-being, FIFA is instituting mandatory three-minute hydration breaks midway through each half of every game during the tournament — held in several cities across North America.

  While this is a welcome change, Brock University heat expert Toby Mündel says FIFA organizers need to go a step further in protecting players from heat stress.

  The Professor of Kinesiology and Canada Research Chair in Extreme Human Environments is part of an international research team that found matches taking place in the evening ensure the least detriment to athletes’ health and optimal performance in hot environments.

  The team, headed by Samuel Wanner at Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais in Brazil, is among the first to examine the impacts of humidity, wind speed and solar radiation — which Mündel says generally line up best in the evening — on athletic performance.

  Relative humidity describes the amount of water vapour in the air compared to how much vapour can potentially exist at that particular temperature, while solar radiation refers to energy the sun emits through electromagnetic waves.

  The FIFA Club World Cup 2025, which occurred at the same time of year as this year’s tournament and at six of the host cities across the United States, provided the case study for the research.

  The team tested whether high relative humidity, solar radiation and air temperature impairs high-speed running and if players run longer distances at higher speeds in the evening compared to the afternoon.

  “Given that the World Cup matches are played in different cities with different weather and at different times of day, time of day has not been previously considered and so that was a novel factor we addressed,” Mündel says.

  The team examined statistics on how fast and far players ran, air temperatures, game schedules and venues, environmental conditions and other data gathered from FIFA technical reports, mathematical modelling and media coverage.

  In their calculations, the researchers used a measurement known as the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT), which includes relative humidity, solar radiation and wind speed calculations in addition to air temperature. FIFA also uses the WBGT in its own calculations.

  The study’s findings include:

  • In 31 of the 57 matches analyzed, players were exposed to conditions of extreme heat illness risk based on a WBGT greater than 28°C.
  • As the WBGT reading increased, players ran shorter distances and at slower speeds, confirming that high relative humidity, solar radiation and air temperature impair high-speed running.
  • Hyperthermia, which occurs when the body’s core and muscle temperatures are elevated, is likely involved in this reduced performance. Because of this, players chose a possession-based style of play, which prioritizes control of the ball, over a transition-based style, which involves running fast, spreading out and other tactics to quickly regain the ball.
  • Players covered less distances at high speeds when relative humidity was high, which is significant as running fast is often a factor in winning a match.
  • Athletes ran longer distances in the evening than in the afternoon due to lower environmental heat stress in the evenings compared to the afternoons.

  These and other results are explored in the team’s study, “Physical performance in elite male soccer under extreme heat: A case study of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup,” published in the journal Temperature earlier this year.

  Mündel says current and future tournament organizers should consider prioritizing elite soccer players’ performance and health over ticket and television revenue, among other factors, when scheduling games.

  “This study emphasizes the importance of advanced planning of match hours and choice of host cities that are less affected by extreme heat,” he says.

  Agencies funding the research include the Government of Canada’s Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Canada Research Chairs Program.

  Toby Mündel, Brock University Professor of Kinesiology and Canada Research Chair in Extreme Human Environments, is available for media interviews on this topic.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  *Maryanne St. Denis, Associate Director, Strategic Communications, Brock University, [email protected] or 905-246-0256

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  Categories: Media releases