VICTORIA - In 2016, Olympian turned University of Victoria cross country and track coach Hilary Stellingwerff won a landmark case against Sport Canada and its Athlete Assistance Program (AAP), which played a pivotal role in advancing equitable funding policies for pregnant athletes. The dispute centred on the discriminatory nature of the AAP policy, which did not adequately support female athletes who became pregnant, treating pregnancy as equivalent to an injury and limiting the ability to access continued funding in her sport.
Nearly a decade in the making, on Oct. 11, 2024, Canada's Minister of Sport and Physical Activity announced a significant funding boost for Canada's high-performance athletes, which includes funding additional cards for pregnant athletes, ensuring eligible athletes continue receiving financial support during and after pregnancy.
"I think this is a good step forward. As I understand it, the new policy will relieve National Sport Organizations (NSOs) of the need to independently address pregnancy funding, ensuring consistency across all sports and allowing for more equitable and supportive treatment of athletes," said Stellingwerff.
The announcement aligns NSOs with a national standard that prioritizes female athletes' health and career longevity. This helps NSOs avoid potential conflicts or inconsistencies with Sport Canada's expectations and ensures compliance with evolving best practices in athlete support.
A decade earlier
Two years after competing in the 1500m at the 2012 London Olympics, Stellingwerff gave birth to her first son. During her pregnancy, she used an "injury" card to maintain her funding. However, when she resumed training and suffered an actual injury, she lost her funding because she'd already used it.
The caveat is that Athletics Canada only allowed athletes to access an injury card once in their career. If an athlete used it for pregnancy, they couldn't access it later for actual injuries, putting them at a financial disadvantage compared to male athletes or non-pregnant peers.
Because of that, Stellingwerff challenged the discriminatory policy that treated pregnancy the same as injury, which highlighted the inequities faced by female athletes, who risked losing critical funding while male athletes faced no comparable consequences.
Stellingwerff won her case and set a legal precedent, with the arbitrator ruling that the policy denying medical carding to pregnant athletes was discriminatory. This decision prompted Athletics Canada to revise its policies, replacing "injury card" terminology with the more inclusive "health card" and allowing for carding due to pregnancy more than once.
"Although the details are still vague, the updated [Sport Canada] policy gives women less urgency and more support which will allow them to focus on recovery and return to competition without worrying about losing essential funding," continued Stellingwerff.
A broader cultural shift
Stellingwerff's case raised awareness, spotlighting the unique challenges faced by female athletes, and planted the seeds for systemic change. The efforts and voices of Stellingwerff and many others helped pave the way for today's formal recognition of pregnancy cards and marking a long-overdue milestone in Canadian sport.
Alongside federal changes, major sponsors like Nike and Under Armour have updated policies to support pregnant athletes. This reflects a growing recognition across the sports industry that athletes can excel post-pregnancy.
