More than $1.3 million is available to Yukon’s sport and recreation community.

Partnerships between the Government of Yukon, the Yukon Lottery Commission and Sport Canada have made the financial opportunities available.

Currie Dixon, minister of community services said he was pleased to announce the funding now available to Yukon’s sport and recreation community.

“We are proud to contribute to a better quality of life for Yukoners through investments in sport and recreation,” he said. “We aim to create opportunities for all Yukoners to live active, healthy lifestyles.”

This year, five special recreation groups will receive a combined $145,000 through the Yukon Recreation Advisory Committee (YRAC), while 27 sport organizations will receive a combined $1,075,000 through YRAC and Yukon Sport 4 Life funding.

High performance grants will help support 33 Yukon athletes, including orienteers Leif and Pia Blake, who are currently in Europe training for the orienteering world championships, Pelly Vincent-Braun who will canoe at the whitewater slalom world championships in Poland in July and Cassis and Rennes Lindsay, who have qualified for age group nationals in Calgary in July.

High performance grants will also support two officials, Lynda Harlow of the Yukon Freestyle Ski Association and Tony Gaw of the Yukon Soccer Association.

Elite athlete funding will support four Yukoners, paralympic wheelchair athlete Jessica Frotten, and cross-country skiers, Dahria Beatty, Knute Johnsgaard, and Emily Nishikawa.

The grants help sport organizations conduct activities for athlete development, leadership development, facility operations and more.

They will be especially helpful as athletes and sport organizations prepare for the 2017 Canada Summer Games in Winnipeg and the 2017 North American Indigenous Games in Toronto.