Masters Indigenous Games Announce International Experience Canada as Presenting Partner
The support provides Indigenous athletes the opportunity to participate in a competitive sports environment.
Mississauga, Ontario — August 23, 2023 — The 2022 Masters Indigenous Games organizing committee is proud to announce International Experience Canada (IEC) as the Presenting Partner of this year's Games. IEC's support of the Games will provide Indigenous athletes aged 20 years and older with the opportunity to participate in a competitive sports environment while also engaging in life-long physical activity that fits within a cultural framework that honours rich Indigenous history and diversity.
IEC is a long-standing partner of ISWO. In addition to being the presenting partner at the 2022 Ontario Summer Indigenous Games, IEC has also supported the 2018 Masters Indigenous Games. IEC and ISWO's shared priorities of enabling youth to develop life-long connections and participate in new experiences make it possible for youth to discover their strengths, learn new skills, and feel inspired and empowered as they move through the next phase of their lives.
"We're thrilled to continue our partnership with IEC for our upcoming Games. IEC's ongoing support of our mission to enhance the overall well-being of Indigenous people living in Ontario enables us to continue delivering quality sport, recreation, and wellness programs and events such as the Masters Indigenous Games," said Marc Laliberte, president of ISWO.
Indigenous Sport & Wellness Ontario (ISWO) is the official Provincial/Territorial Aboriginal Sport Body(P/TASB) for Ontario and consistently delivers outstanding sporting and cultural events. Following a few challenging years of restrictions and limitations on in-person programming, ISWO successfully hosted the 2022 Ontario Summer Indigenous Games.
International Experience Canada (IEC) is a program run by the Government of Canada that oversees youth mobility arrangements that permit Canadian citizens 18-35 years old to obtain the proper permits to work and travel in more than 30 partner countries and foreign territories for up to two years, depending on country-specific requirements. As a reciprocal program, youth citizens from partner countries can come to Canada for the same reasons.
Acknowledgment
ISWO honours the traditional lands and homelands of all Indigenous Peoples and communities across the province of Ontario, including First Nations, Inuit, and Métis living both on and off reserve, in rural and urban communities.
Meela Seenarain
Dubai, United Arab Emirates UAE