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Navigating the Road to 2026 and How to Keep Sport Safe dominated conversation on Day 2

By Staff, 02/22/20, 5:45PM EST

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The Ontario Soccer Summit 2020 was in full swing as a pair of panels and 15 different sessions took place

Play. Inspire. Unite. 

The Ontario Soccer Summit 2020, presented by Respect in Sport, was in full swing on Day 2 at Redeemer University. 

The day kicked off with a an engaging panel discussion that looked at the Road to 2026 and what opportunities await for the sport in Canada and Ontario.

Featuring speakers from Canada Soccer, Toronto FC, the Canadian Premier League and Canadian Soccer Business, the sport's leaders gave fantastic insights into where they see the game going in the next six years. 

The audience then broke off into their separate streams for the day's development sessions. 

Coaches heard from Kris Van Der Haegen from the Royal Belgian FA on Player Development by Design, Willie McNab from Celtic FC for an on field coach education session, Marisu Poevde on bridging the gap from youth to pro goalkeeping and Stuart Neely from Canada Soccer on the need for change. 

The Match Officials stream were treated to a panel discussion on the importance of perspective in officiating, heard from Canada Soccer's Isaac Raymond on Managing the Technical Staff and were led by Howard Webb, an internationally renowned match official, on MLS Fitness Training and Game Preparation. 

Community Leaders heard from a wide variety of speakers which included: Dr. Nick Bontis, Canada Soccer Vice President and professor at McMaster University, Matt Greenwood on Accessible Soccer, Alice Strachan on Relationship Management and Shelley Callaghan on Female Leadership. 

Sprinkled throughout the day were Safe Sport sessions held by Dr. Susan Lambert, Dr. Gretchen Kerr and Dr. Kevin Gordon and those culminated in an early evening panel discussion on Safe Sport for All, hosted by Jason deVos, Canada Soccer's Director of Development. 

Day 2 concluded with attendees heading off to the Halftime Huddle, a networking event at Shoeless Joe's. 

Stay up to date all weekend

Visit the Ontario Soccer Facebook page for photos being updated throughout the weekend and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for behind-the-scenes coverage.