Tobacco-Free Sports and Recreation Policies

Tobacco-Free Sports and Recreation Policies
TFSR Evaluation Study
A few respondents felt that simply participating in the TFSR evaluation has stimulated their
thinking around TFSR policy and related activities. Both PHU informants reflected on how both
hockey teams’ participation has offered a renewed level of interest in TFSR policy
implementation from both their health unit and from the hockey administration. Players shared
their TFSR perceptions and were eager to explain what they had learned from the various TFSR
events and activities that they had been exposed to–and in some cases–actively contributed to
in the past two years. New players had the opportunity to hear about the importance of being
tobacco-free within and outside of the sport setting from other players, and the PHU facilitators
and youth staff who participated in the focus groups.
Suggestions to Promote TFSR policy
When asked about suggestions for increasing awareness and support for tobacco free sports and
recreation policies, the Peewee/Bantam spectators emphasized:
• Increase signage and advertising
• Increase designated areas and enforcement
• Increase the TFSR policy reach beyond selected teams and hockey context
• Reinforce positive role modeling
With respect to suggestions about signage/ advertising and general promotion, there were 37
comments (e.g., radio commercials, posters in dressing rooms, newsletters, advertisements on
the internet, pamphlets, post policy on the website, public events, more advertising – use a
sports related recognizable face, more visible signs at each doorway including dressing rooms,
bathroom doors, banners around arena doors, arena announcements, promotional videos for
kids, more seminars in public events, and hosting a meeting for parents and coaches).
The survey respondents further suggested increasing designated smoking areas and increasing
enforcement of the TFSR policy (n=10, e.g., the people of the arena need to enforce it more,
enforce policy on not smoking outside the doors, putting it further away, rule that you can't
smoke outside, policing, tobacco free public outdoor spaces, and banning all smoking from
public sports areas).
In addition, the Peewee/Bantam survey respondents mentioned increasing the reach of the
policy to include more teams, the organization as a whole (with buy-in), going beyond the hockey
Ontario Tobacco Research Unit 26