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WNBA announces Toronto franchise expansion team

This year, Larry Tanenbaum and his group, Kilmer Sports Ventures, submitted a bid for a WNBA Toronto expansion team. Shortly after, it was announced that the bid was successful, with the team set to begin play in 2026.

We also learned about the leadership behind the WNBA Toronto team, including Teresa Resch as president and Tanenbaum as owner. To celebrate the announcement, the WNBA hosted an event in Toronto to confirm the news and give the city its well-deserved recognition as a market ready for a team. Fans were invited to submit ideas for the team’s name, and a few months later, the official name was revealed: the Toronto Tempo.

The team has announced that merchandise will be available at the start of the 2025 year.

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The PWHL’s mega inaugural year

The PWHL’s first season at the beginning of 2024 was nothing short of a success, with impressive viewership numbers, strong partnerships and sponsorships, takeover games at NHL arenas, and record-setting attendance numbers.

During the offseason, the league unveiled the names, logos, and new jerseys for its six teams, leaving fans eagerly anticipating the second season just around the corner.

The six team names are: Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost, Montréal Victoire, New York Sirens, Ottawa Charge, and Toronto Sceptres.

In November, the league kicked off its second season with even more games on the schedule, increased opportunities to purchase merchandise both in person at new retail spots and online, and the announcement of additional takeover games hosted at new and returning NHL arenas throughout the season.

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Team Canada’s women athletes thrived at the Olympics and Paralympics (Part 1)

The 2024 Paris Olympics were a stage where Canadian women athletes were hard to miss. The games marked the first time we saw full gender parity among competing athletes.

Team Canada won 27 medals, with women athletes securing 18 of them. Some of the most notable medalists included swimmer Summer McIntosh, judoka Christa Deguchi, hammer thrower Camryn Rogers, the women’s sevens rugby team, and tennis player Gabriela Dabrowski. It was recently revealed that Dabrowski competed and won a medal during the Olympics while undergoing cancer treatment.

The rise in social media engagement and athlete-created content offered a unique perspective,  allowing fans to feel more connected and get to know the athletes on a more personal level. This increased visibility continued to place women athletes front and centre, proving they make for great public figures to follow, beyond the sport in which they compete.

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​​Team Canada’s women athletes thrived at the Olympics and Paralympics (Part 2)

It comes as no surprise that Canadian women para athletes stole the show during the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games! 

Team Canada won 29 medals, with women para athletes securing 13 of them. Some of the most notable medalists included para swimmers Aurélie Rivard, Danielle Dorris, Tess Routliffe, para canoeist Brianna Hennessy, and the women’s sitting volleyball team.

A consistent focus for the Paralympics is the emphasis on equal support, equal media representation, equal narratives, and breaking the stigma that the Paralympics are secondary to the Olympics. The games saw success in this area as well, with over 11 million Canadians tuning into CBC coverage. Additionally, Canadians consumed 614,000 hours of content on CBC digital and streaming platforms- a 153% increase since the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games. 

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Northern Super League establishes its identity with teams, logos, and player signings

The Northern Super League laid the groundwork throughout the year in preparation for its kickoff in 2025.Previously known as Project 8, the Canadian women’s professional soccer league underwent a name rebrand, Northern Super League, while simultaneously announcing its six founding team locations.

Over the year, the six teams revealed their official names and logos, with merchandise becoming available shortly thereafter. The six teams are: Calgary Wild FC, Halifax Tides FC, Montréal Roses FC, Ottawa Rapid FC, AFC Toronto, and Vancouver Rise FC. Toward the end of the year, teams began announcing player signings and the venues where they will compete.

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Women’s tennis is front and centre with National Bank Open and gender equity conference

It was a summer of women’s tennis in Toronto! The National Bank Open was back in town, this year hosting the top women’s professional tennis players from around the world. 

Simultaneously, the third annual Unmatched: Gender Equity in Sports Conference featured some special guests. The keynote speaker was tennis icon Venus Williams. The conference also included some familiar faces from the PWHL world, such as Jayna Hefford, Laura Stacey, Natalie Spooner, and Marie-Philip Poulin.

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Report explores progress and challenges in girls sports

Canadian Women and Sport released their 2024 Rally Report, which notably highlighted the state of girls sports in Canada, both the positives and the challenges.Some of the achievements found in their research include:

• 63% of girls aged 6-18 report participating in organized team or individual sport at least weekly, compared to 68% of boys.
• Girls who play organized team or individual sports are more likely to engage in informal sport and physical activity compared to those who never played.
• 9 in 10 girls aged 6-12 engage in physical education class, recess, and intramurals.
• 7 in 10 girls are keen to engage in sports as fans.
• Half of the girls surveyed feel inspired by coaches and role models who represent their diverse backgrounds.

Some of the weak spots/areas for improvement in their research include:

• Girls from lower-income households of all racial backgrounds are less likely to participate, particularly when they also have a disability.
• Girls access most forms of sport and physical activity at lower rates than boys.
• There is a need for improvement when it comes to retaining girls in informal sports and physical activity so they can reap the physical, mental, social, etc. benefits of being active.

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WNBA Canada Game brings the spotlight to Edmonton and Vancouver

The WNBA continued its Canada Game tradition, this time bringing women’s basketball to Edmonton, Alberta. The sold-out game was hosted at Rogers Place. Towards the end of the year, the WNBA announced that they would continue the tradition in 2025 by bringing a WNBA Canada Game to Vancouver, British Columbia. The 2025 game will be hosted at Rogers Arena.

The WNBA’s decision to continue hosting games in Canada, spanning different provinces and cities, highlights the growing demand among fans and consumers eager to embrace women’s basketball. With the Toronto Tempo confirmed as the home of Canada’s first WNBA team, the franchise is set to unite the entire country. As “Canada’s team,” the Toronto Tempo will be in a special position to strengthen the league’s Canadian presence and continue building excitement for the future of women’s basketball in Canada.

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Women’s 3×3 national basketball team wins gold in FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup

The Canadian 3×3 women’s national basketball team is one to watch! During the 2024 FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup, the team achieved great success, in the end, winning their second-ever gold medal by defeating Cuba, Brazil, and the USA. Canada won 21-12 against Cuba in the quarterfinals and 18-11 against Brazil in the semifinals. In the final game, against the USA, Canada came out on top with an overtime win of 19-18.

Since 2022, the women’s 3×3 team has consistently finished in third place or higher. The team reflected on their gold medal win, emphasizing how their success “continues to showcase not only the sport to Canadians but also that it’s a high-level opportunity for girls to play for their country.”

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59-year-old woman breaks second world record: most push-ups in one hour

DonnaJean Wilde, a 59-year-old woman from Alberta, had quite the year! In 2024, she set two Guinness World Records. Her first was for the longest time in an abdominal plank position for a female, holding a plank for 4 hours, 30 minutes, and 11 seconds.

Later in the year, Wilde set out to break another record and succeeded, this time achieving the Guinness World Record for the most push-ups in one hour by a female. She completed an impressive 1,575 push-ups in 60 minutes.

Wilde describes herself as a “lifelong athlete” and believes in staying active and setting health and wellness goals. 

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Kaitlyn’s Sport Stories are written by Kaitlyn Lehbert, a passionate and driven sport advocate for girls and women. Kaitlyn holds her Bachelor’s degree in Sports Management from Brock University. Learn more about Kaitlyn by clicking here!

Have a sport story you want to share? Contact info@fastandfemale.com and it may get featured in Kaitlyn’s next feature.