Over forty athletes will gather at Parc Jean-Drapeau in Montreal on June 7th to celebrate the 100 days before the opening ceremonies of the Sydney Olympic Games and to receive their share of the Canadian Olympic Association's (COA) Athletes Fund.

An information session on the upcoming Olympic Games will be part of the event. Similar sessions for athletes will take place in National Sport Centres and in selected training camps across the country. "The athletes have many questions before the Games and we have created this opportunity to meet them in person and to provide them with the information they need to optimize their preparation," said Sue Hylland, Team Captain of the Canadian Team.

The COA's Athletes Fund supports world-ranked Olympian and Pan American athletes in financial need. Approximately $988,990 will be distributed to 221 athletes over the next couple of months. The Fund has committed four million dollars over four years (1997-2000), making it the largest private sector financial contribution to Canadian athletes.

The cheques will be presented to approximately thirty athletes including Maryse Turcotte (weightlifting), Benoit Gaudet (boxing), Yannick Lupien (swimming), Philippe Comtois (diving), Luce Baillageon (judo), Kwaku Boateng (athletics), Marie-Luc Arpin (water-polo), Christine Boudrias (short track speed skating), Kristy Sargeant (figure skating) and Stephane Rochon (freestyle skiing).

Carol Anne Letheren, chief executive officer of the COA, says the Fund will provide athletes with much needed financial support that will help them achieve their goals at this summer's Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.

The COA, a private, not-for-profit corporation, is the largest private sector funder of amateur sport in Canada. Its board of directors includes representatives of the National Federations of every Olympic and Pan Am sport. It is responsible for all aspects of Canada's involvement in the Olympic Movement, including Canada's participation in the Olympic and Pan American Games. In addition, the COA manages a wide variety of programs that promote the Olympic Movement in Canada through cultural and educational means. Please visit our web site at www.coa.ca.