Scotiabank donates $1 million to FitSpirit to help build teenage girls' confidence through physical activity

TORONTO, May 8, 2018 /CNW/ - Today, Canadian not-for-profit FitSpirit announced the Scotiabank FitSpirit Celebration in Toronto. The Celebration is the culmination of FitSpirit's 10-week program where participating young women run a five or 10 kilometre race, encouraging them to push their limits while having fun being active.

For more than ten years, FitSpirit has inspired teenage girls to rediscover their love of physical activity through fun challenges and programs that foster an empowering environment. Past programs have included school-based running programs, motivational speaker events and student-run charitable fundraisers.

"FitSpirit's work is incredibly important for the future of Canadian girls' physical and mental health," says Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, official spokesperson for FitSpirit. "By encouraging participants to stay active and have fun at a young age, we are empowering them to put their health and wellness first as they mature into adults."

To help support the important work of FitSpirit, Scotiabank is donating $1 million, becoming the title sponsor of the FitSpirit Celebrations. Scotiabank's support will result in an increased number and size of Celebration events in Canada, enabling even more young women to celebrate their accomplishments through sport.

"We understand that staying active is an integral part of young women's physical, mental and emotional health," says Claudine Labelle, Founder and President of FitSpirit. "If girls commit to an active lifestyle in their teenage years, they are more likely to continue to be active in adulthood. The best way to encourage them is to provide a safe and supportive space to pursue the fun of physical activity."

Research shows that half of Canadian girls feel pressure to please others and appear "perfect" when they hit puberty, resulting in them taking on less challenges and avoiding new things.ⁱ This coincides with many young women abandoning athletics and other physical activities in high school. By the time they graduate, nine out of 10 girls fail to meet Canadian exercise standards. FitSpirit knows this trend can be reversed by encouraging young women to build their self-esteem and confidence.

"At Scotiabank we are passionate about helping young people reach their infinite potential," says Gillian Riley, Executive Vice-President, Canadian Commercial Banking, Scotiabank. "We believe our donation to FitSpirit is an investment in the long-term security, stability and growth of our communities. We hope our support will help inspire girls to stay involved with sport, gaining further confidence, skills and resources to support their success."

Scotiabank FitSpirit 2018 Celebrations will take place in the following locations:

• Toronto (May 8)
• Gatineau (May 10)
• Montreal (May 15)
• Quebec (May 17)
• Rimouski (May 29)
• Sudbury (June 3)
• Rouyn-Noranda (June 3)

For more information about the Celebrations, please visit www.fitspirit.ca/participate/celebrations.

About FitSpirit
Founded in 2007 by Claudine Labelle, FitSpirit's mission is to help Canadian girls discover the benefits and fun of being physically active. To do this, FitSpirit partners with schools and community organizations to provide a variety of activities to girls aged 12 to 17 that get them moving and keep them physically active over the long term. It offers tools and services within a holistic approach based on flexible, individualized support to help schools engage girls through physical activities tailored to their challenges and their lives. Supervised by school representatives and FitSpirit ambassadors (athletes-speakers, kinesiologists, mentors), the girls live a rewarding experience in a relaxed atmosphere. No competition, no concern for performance: the only goal is to have fun trying new physical activities.

Scotiabank
At Scotiabank, we aim to support organizations that are committed to helping young people reach their infinite potential. Young people are our future leaders and Scotiabank's goal is to help ensure that they have the necessary skills and resources they need to support their success. Together with our employees, the Bank supports causes at a grassroots level. Recognized as a leader for our charitable donations and philanthropic activities, in 2017, Scotiabank contributed more than $80 million to help our communities around the world.

Scotiabank is Canada's international bank and a leading financial services provider in North America, Latin America, the Caribbean and Central America, and Asia-Pacific. We are dedicated to helping our 24 million customers become better off through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of more than 89,000 employees and assets of over $923 billion (as at January 31, 2018), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto (TSX: BNS) and New York Exchanges (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @Scotiabank.