Sport Yukon’s annual awards night proved to be a significant moment for cyclist Zach Bell.

Not only did the 32-year-old Watson Lake native earn his seventh International Athlete of the Year award from Sport Yukon, he also announced the establishment of a new sport development program bearing his name.

The Zach Bell Rural Youth Sport Development Program was created to enable young athletes and coaches in the territory access to high-level athletes and coaches in order to broaden their skill networks.

Bell said the program was created in partnership with Air North and Sport Yukon.

Bell hopes the program will work to improve sport programs across the Yukon, he told the crowd gathered at the Yukon Convention Centre.

“The program will provide a stable funding base that will allow Yukon sport organizations to access Outside Olympic-level expertise such as coaches or athletes to run programs or camps here in the Yukon,” Bell explained of the new initiative.

“When I was a young athlete, my career was basically jump-started with a visit from one of Canada’s Olympians. The goal of this fund is to provide access to that kind of experience for any sport in the Yukon.”

Bell, who represented the territory at two Summer Olympic Games, said the camps must also include the Yukon’s rural communities.

In some scenarios, funds may help athletes and coaches from the territory attend beneficial programs Outside of the Yukon.

However, preference will be given to bringing sport experts to the territory, as it is more cost effective and will provide greater access to local athletes.

Sport organizations in good standing with Sport Yukon are eligible to apply for funding for camps or seminars with a minimum length of three days. The application process will include two intake periods with deadlines of Jan. 31 for summer camps and June 30 for winter camps.

The fund will contribute to travel costs from any airport Air North operates out of, and will provide an additional travel honorarium of $1,000 if necessary. That budget must cover honorariums paid to the expert, as well as travel or other costs associated with the sport expert’s attendance.

“It is my hope that this partnership will allow myself, as well as the other Yukon Olympians, to connect young Yukon athletes with the network of expertise that we’ve been able to connect with through our participation on national teams without increasing the financial strain on sports organizations themselves, or the sport funding already available,” Bell explained.

“With this dedicated stream of support, we should be able to gain consistent access for Yukon athletes and coaches to improve their skills and abilities.”

Bell currently resides in North Vancouver.