Community of Excellence for Sport and Wellness Initiative
Endorsed by Council in 2007, the “Community of Excellence for Sport and Wellness” initiative is a partnership-based initiative aimed at positioning Richmond to be the best place for residents to play and achieve their highest potential, while also being a model for a ‘Sport for Life’ community in Canada and the world. This initiative is comprised of four complementary and integrated strategies:
- Community Wellness Strategy
- Richmond Sport for Life Strategy (2010 - 2015)
- Olympic and Paralympic Involvement and Legacy
- Richmond Sport Hosting Strategy
Community Wellness Strategy
Endorsed by Council in February 2010, the 
Richmond Community Wellness Strategy is intended to provide a strategic framework to guide the planning and development of wellness-promoting programs and activities throughout Richmond. This strategy was developed in partnership between the City of Richmond, Vancouver Coastal Health Authority and Richmond School District.
When first conceived, the Community Wellness Strategy was focused on achieving an increase in physical activity as a way of reaching the City’s vision. However, after the consultative interviews and feedback, it became clear that physical wellness cannot happen independently. It correlates strongly with residents having a sense of connectedness to their community, and a sense of wellness and well-being. The three key desired outcomes for this strategy are for Richmond citizens to have:
- Increased permanent commitment to wellness and well-being
- Increased physical activity and physical fitness,
- Increased sense of connectedness to community – a feeling of belonging.
Richmond Sport for Life Strategy
Endorsed by Council in November 2010, the process of developing the Richmond Sport for Life Strategy (2010-2015) was a collaborative effort between the City and the various Richmond agencies and community organizations involved in the delivery of sports programs and services in Richmond. The vision outlined in the strategy is that, "All Richmond residents have access to a full range of opportunities in order to experience the passion and joy of participating in sport and physical activity. Richmond will have an integrated delivery of recreation, school physical education/athletics and community sport, to enable all citizens to reach their full potential within the ‘physical literacy’, ‘enhanced sport achievement’ and ‘active for life’ framework.
Richmond Sport Hosting Strategy
Sport hosting is the staging of competitive sporting events and sport related meetings that attract visitors to Richmond as spectators, officials, competitors or delegates. In January 2009, the City of Richmond adopted a Sport Hosting Strategy, which included:
- Establishment of a Richmond Sport Hosting Office within the City with a mandate to serve as a one-stop-shop for sport hosting in Richmond and proactively pursue attraction of major provincial, national and international sporting events.
- Establishment of a Richmond Sport Hosting Task Force, comprised of key stakeholders from the City, sport, tourism and the Oval, with a mandate to provide assistance and guidance to the Richmond Sport Hosting Office.
- Recruitment of an experienced Sport Hosting Manager.
- Establishment of a benchmarking and operational performance measurement process, compliant with the Sport Tourism Economic Assessment model (STEAM guidelines) developed by the Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance.
