2013 Canada Summer Games—Celebrating Canada’s two official languages through sports
Sports offer a unique and positive gateway for individual exploration and development, two elements that are also at the heart of learning a second language. For this reason, the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages will be at the 2013 Canada Summer Games. This year’s Games are being hosted in Sherbrooke, Quebec from August 2 to 17, and are a wonderful occasion for everyone to celebrate both of Canada’s official languages.
This event provides a unique opportunity for all in attendance to talk in Canada’s official languages. It is also a chance for unilingual individuals to push through language barriers and reach out to learn new words of celebration in their second language. Graham Fraser, the Commissioner of Official Languages, gives his views on how succeeding in sports can be used as a model for language development:
The Canada Games build lasting legacies for Canadian sports that resonate across Canada, and are a great place to showcase our official languages. The skills and commitment related to learning and mastering a sport can be related to learning both of Canada’s official languages. It takes action, time, a strong network and a structured schedule to achieve success.
The slogan of the 2013 Canada Summer Games is “Live it!”. This slogan was designed to entice everyone to join in the celebrations. Sporting events such as the Canada Games unify and strengthen our national values by bringing together youth from all provinces and territories. Beyond being a unique sporting event, the 2013 Canada Summer Games promotes values such as personal achievement, perseverance, pleasure, and accountability, all in a spirit of friendship.
The Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages at the Canada Summer Games
Drop by and say hello
Graham Fraser, the Commissioner of Official languages, will be present at the opening ceremonies. The Office of the Commissioner will also have a team present at the Games from August 2 to 17. During the span of the Games, the Office of the Commissioner will connect with athletes and Sherbrooke Games staff at its kiosk, which will be located in the Athletes Village at the Bishop’s University campus.
On the move
The Office of the Commissioner’s mobile social team will also be travelling from site to site. This team will be very interactive, giving away posters, beach balls and cooling scarves, and interviewing athletes, volunteers, staff and visitors about the Games, the value of being bilingual and Canada’s two official languages. If you are at the Games, don’t hesitate to stop by and chat with our friendly mobile team. You can also interact with them live via our social media accounts whether you are at the Games or in another part of Canada or the world! Our social media team will also be using the following hashtags to make it easier for you to follow or join the conversation:
#2languagesLiveIt or #jcg2013
To find out where we are and all that we’re doing, and to watch our short videos, we encourage you to follow us on Twitter in English @OCOLCanada and in French @CLOduCanada, and to “Like” our Facebook page.
If you would like more information on Canada’s official languages or the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages, visit www.officiallanguages.gc.ca.
Published on Friday, August 02, 2013