Canada’s first concussion-safety law applies to every Ontario amateur sports organization serving anyone under 26. Here is exactly what it requires.
Rowan’s Law (Concussion Safety), 2018 — S.O. 2018, c. 1 — is Ontario’s landmark concussion-safety statute, named after Rowan Stringer, a 17-year-old Ottawa high school student and rugby player who died in May 2013 after sustaining multiple concussions in the span of one week while playing for her school team. A coroner’s inquest into her death issued 49 recommendations for preventing similar tragedies, which served as the foundation for the legislation.
The law came into force on July 1, 2019 and was the first legislation of its kind in Canada. It establishes a mandatory framework for concussion prevention, identification, and management in amateur sport, and covers every Ontario amateur sports organization where athletes under the age of 26 participate — regardless of sport or skill level.
Rowan’s Law applies to any Ontario amateur sports organization — defined broadly to include any organization or club that operates, sanctions, or facilitates amateur sport in Ontario. This includes:
Within each covered organization, the following individuals have specific obligations:
The statute imposes five distinct compliance obligations on Ontario amateur sports organizations. All five must be in place before athletes participate in any on-sport activity. Section references below are provided for navigation; verify against the current consolidated statute at ontario.ca/laws.
Before each season of play, athletes under 26, parents or guardians of minor athletes, coaches, and officials must each acknowledge the provincial Concussion Awareness Resources. This is not a one-time registration event — the acknowledgment must be renewed for every season. A missing or expired acknowledgment constitutes non-compliance with Rowan’s Law’s annual acknowledgment requirement.
Each covered organization must adopt a club-specific Concussion Code of Conduct. The Code must be reviewed annually and must identify the Designated Person, reference the provincial resources, and set out removal-from-sport and return-to-sport procedures. The Ministry provides a template, but clubs are responsible for adopting it.
The organization must designate a Designated Person with explicit authority to immediately remove from sport any athlete suspected of having sustained a concussion. The Designated Person need not be a medical professional — but must be named, trained, and empowered to act without override by coaches, parents, or the athlete themselves.
When a minor athlete is removed from sport for suspected concussion, the organization must notify the athlete’s parent or guardian immediately. The notification obligation arises at the moment of removal — not after a medical assessment is completed.
No athlete who has been removed for suspected concussion may return to full-contact practice or competition without written clearance from a physician or nurse practitioner. The clearance must be accompanied by completion of the six-stage stepwise return-to-sport protocol. Progression through stages must be documented.
Athletes must complete each stage successfully — at least 24 hours per stage with no symptom recurrence — before advancing to the next. An athlete must not skip stages. Written physician or nurse practitioner clearance is mandatory before Stage 5.
Daily activities that do not provoke symptoms (e.g., light reading, screen time within tolerance). Goal: gradual reintroduction of cognitive and physical activity.
Walking, swimming, or stationary cycling at low intensity. No resistance training. Goal: increase heart rate.
Running drills, skating drills, hitting strokes on court without opposition. No head-impact activities. Goal: add movement.
More complex drills (e.g., passing, footwork patterns). May involve teammates. Goal: exercise, coordination, and cognitive load.
Written clearance from a physician or nurse practitioner is mandatory before this stage. Athlete participates in normal training contact with full physical effort. Goal: restore confidence and assess functional skills.
Full return to competitive play. Medical clearance from Stage 5 must remain current. Documentation of all stages must be retained by the club.
Failure to comply with Rowan’s Law exposes Ontario sports clubs to consequences on two tracks simultaneously:
Informational only — not legal advice. Consult qualified Ontario counsel for your club’s specific situation.
SportsX automates annual acknowledgment collection, tracks return-to-sport stage completion, and flags any athlete whose acknowledgment has lapsed — before the season starts.
