<div>Hi everyone, 
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<div>My name is Shania Bedward, a Team Canada Weightlifter, and I would like to have your support to help get me to this year's World Championships this December in Bahrain. 
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<div>The World Championships is weightlifting's most prestigious annual event, which Canada will only send a handful of its elite athletes to. I am one of the few who has been selected, and I plan on making the most of this amazing opportunity, and to close the year with my best performance! 
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<div>I've only been in the sport for a short time, my 1st competition being a little less than 4 years ago. But in that short time, I've been able to progress quickly, winning my 1st National Championship after less than a year in the sport! I've gone on to win 2 more National Championships since, as well as to represent Canada on the international stage with increasing levels of success. 
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<div>This year has been my most successful yet, as I was able to win medals at multiple international events, and to win my 1st international competition, The 2024 Commonwealth Championships in Fiji! I won my 1st international medal, a bronze at the Thailand World Cup in April, I repeated as National champion in May and then had my breakthrough performance at the Commonwealth in September. It's been an amazing year, and as great as that's all been, I feel that I'm getting better all the time in training, and that I can have an even better performance at the World Championships!
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<div>With great performances like these, you might be asking yourself why I have to ask for your support to get me to the World Championships. Doesn't our government pay for the travel expenses of Team Canada athletes, who after all will be representing Canada? Doesn't our government provide funding to elite athletes to encourage them to continue their training? The harsh reality of being a Team Canada weightlifter is that on a typical 20-athlete team attending an international competition, at most 4 will be partially reimbursed, sometimes fewer than that and oftentimes none at all. This year's Worlds will be the 10th time I have the honor of competing for Canada, entirely self-funded for the 9th time. 
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<div>Canada does have a program called Athlete Assistance Program (AAP) which pays elite athletes to train year round, however, only 7 weightlifters receive this grant each year. Since our teams are often 15-20 athletes and sometimes more, there will always be a majority of our team that qualify to go to events, but then have to figure out if they can actually afford to go or not. Financial concerns shouldn't be the reason that anyone decides not to represent our great country, or decides that they can't fully pursue their career in sport. 
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<div>I actually qualified for the AAP program last year, and was set to receive it again this year, however, my funding award was challenged in court, and I've had to train and compete the whole year without it. As I continue to fight to receive the funding that my lifting qualified me to receive, I still have to attend costly international events, and continue to train hard like I always do, so that I make sure I qualify to get next year's funding. 
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<div>It's a difficult situation, as had I not gone to any internationals due to the cost, that would have taken me out of consideration for funding in 2025. The only option available to me to remain part of Team Canada and to stay in the mix for funding was to absorb the huge costs this year, and have an excellent chance to requalify next year. That's exactly what's happened, as I am now in an excellent position for 2025 funding. Getting through the rest of this year is the tricky part, and why I am reaching out to all of you. 
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<div>Competing against the world's best requires that I follow a high-quality training program put together by elite coaches, that I eat high-quality food, that I make sure to supplement my diet with key vitamins and minerals and that I recover from the hard training that I do by getting massage therapy and chiropractic treatment on a regular basis. When you start to add it all up, you can see how living the athlete lifestyle can be quite expensive, and that's besides the roughly $10,000 this year’s competitions in Thailand, Fiji and Bahrain have cost me so far, a nunber which will be closer to $15,000 by the end of the year. 
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<div>The current system in Canada does not do enough to support our fellow Canadians who aspire to be future olympians. These athletes have dreams, drive and determination, which unfortunately isn't enough to make it if you don't also have dollars, especially with the high cost of living these days.
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<div>Beyond the challenges I face just to be able to afford to keep my Olympic dreams alive, there are countless weightlifters and athletes in other sports in Canada that are facing similar hardships. I intend to fight on behalf of all athletes in Canada so that fundraising campaigns will no longer be necessary, freeing up our country's best to practice their sport instead of their sales skills. Please help me represent Team Canada at the upcoming World Championships this year, and I will do my best to make an impact both on and off the platform. 
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<div>Thank you,
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<div>Shania Bedward
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<div>Team Canada Weightlifter 
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<div>2024 Commonwealth Champion
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