In 2025, Waterski and Wakeboard Saskatchewan (WSWS) proved that opportunities expand when you seize them.

For the past decade, WSWS has worked to address underrepresented groups seen in their sport by offering travel clinics across the province in addition to hosting Give It a Go programs for women, Newcomer Canadians and adaptive athletes.

With the constraints of a limited budget, time and resources, WSWS was often forced to make sacrifices and limit the number of opportunities offered, which is where the Spark IDEAs Grant came in.

With funding from the Spark IDEAs Grant, provided through the Sask Lotteries Trust Fund, WSWS was able to increase the number of clinics and programs that could be offered to various groups across the province who may not otherwise explore the sport.

The grant’s purpose is to increase Inclusive, Diverse, Equitable and Accessible opportunities in Saskatchewan’s amateur sport system, while achieving lasting change. With the aid of member-led initiatives, the grant is designed to expand the accessibility of quality sport in the province. 

“The goal was to expand opportunities to new communities and offer more clinics to areas and athletes that we have not served previously. We wanted to make connections in new communities and with new athletes, beyond the outreach from the past decade. We wanted to add new programming and outreach by increasing capacity at the cable park,” shared Len Thomas, Executive Director of WSWS.

Part of that outreach was expanding their adaptive program to include visually impaired athletes, as well as to increase the number of female participants overall by encouraging women to explore the sport as athletes, coaches, officials and volunteers.

Expanding their adaptive program was highlighted by the introduction of a headset that allows athletes with visual impairments to speak directly with their coach. And as WSWS continues to receive various grants, Thomas looks to create an accessible dock that would allow athletes to achieve full independence.

In addition, receiving the grant marked the beginning to a succession of growth that seen the program go from two to five coaches, as well as having three more as relief.

“We were able to offer six travel clinic opportunities from this initiative, increasing it from the usual two per year that we were able to accommodate under our usual budget for underrepresented athletes,” said Thomas. “We were able to offer a three-day clinic in mid-June of 2025 for evacuees from La Ronge who were at Sturgeon Lake. Once the evacuation notice was lifted, we able to go to La Ronge and offer a two-day clinic, as well as a one-day tryit on Canada Day. This one-day clinic had over 70 participants.”

Grant funding, combined with the efforts of WSWS’ Vice President, Daniel Gray allowed them to visit three new Indigenous communities and see growth in their local programs.

Women on the Water, which is now hosted out of their cable park in Saskatoon, saw the highest attendance since being established over a decade ago. The first night had five attendees and by the end of the season, 17 women were in attendance.

The program became a catalyst to so much more, as it led to other weekly groups developing and youth athletes joining other programs, with some even applying for SaskFirst as prospects, which introduces youth athletes to the high-performance stream of staying in the sport long-term.

“Tuesday nights we offered Women on the Water and it blew up other programming, so that’s pretty cool. Same with the travel clinic, we offered it and it blew up because opportunities multiply as they are seized. And the opportunities were there, we were just able to string them together,” stated Thomas.

Overall, last year saw WSWS start the beginning of what Thomas hopes becomes a lifetime of participation in sport and the potential to contribute to the legacy of waterski and wakeboarding in Saskatchewan.

“Maybe they learn to waterski and that’s it and they do it a couple times in the summer, but that’s their activity for life, you’re active for life. You could become a coach, you could become an official,” said Thomas. “The Spark Grant provided a legacy for us in coaching resources, in equipment and we will see with the athletes.”

The next intake deadline is March 17, 2026.