Free multi-sport league offers Saskatoon kids more than just exercise

The cost and time commitment required for parents to put their children in organized sport is increasing, but one Saskatoon league is breaking those barriers.

While the cost of joining and time commitment required for parents to put their children in organized sport is increasing, one Saskatoon multi-sport league is removing those barriers.

On Tuesday and Thursday nights in the summer, dozens of kids flock to Leif Erickson Park, put on their jerseys and join their teammates to play one of three sports in the Saskatoon Try-Sport League.

“This is my first time being on an organized team,” said Kai, who joined the program for the 2025 season. “It feels good.”

“I was like, you’re excited?” said Shanna, a parent. “You want to do this? He’s like, absolutely, so he’s excited.”

Each evening, kids eight and older meet their coaches and get suited up with a jersey and all the necessary equipment before practising their skills.

“The coaches do an outstanding job,” said Kenzie Friesen, Saskatoon Try-Sport League founder.

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“I really give them a lot of ownership for their team. They’re fully in charge of their own dynamic warmup each day, sport specific drills and skills training.”

In the second half of the session, kids compete against each other in games.

Most importantly, it’s free to participate.

“There’s a huge financial barrier to it, especially to organized sport,” said Try-Sport League coordinator Hya El-Baroudy. “And so having the opportunity to give children who otherwise wouldn’t have an opportunity to participate in sport, to do that here has been really incredible.”

The league, the equipment and jerseys are made possible by community partners like Canadian Tire Jumpstart.

“We’re able to cover the coach honorarium and all these other fees that would otherwise make sports more expensive for these athletes,” Friesen told CTV News. “So parents are really appreciative that it’s free for their kids and they get to just come up and have a good time.”

Friesen, a former Team Canada softball player, knows firsthand the value of playing multiple sports.

“It’s not a coincidence, I don’t think, a lot of our girls were all multi-sport athletes,” she said.

“I think all of us through high school and even some into college. So we always saw the benefits first-hand of being able to do lots of sports, try out different things, see what sticks and see what you’re passionate about.”

Friesen says the program reaches beyond the obvious physical and social benefits to being involved in sports.

“I just think sports are so fun,” she said.

“I think that it bridges this gap between people. As soon as you’re on a team, you’ve got this common goal of ‘we want to score a goal,’ or ‘we want to get a touchdown.’ Then you’ve got something that sort of binds you together. And I think that’s really neat for kids to have that sense of connection and the shared goal. I always found that really special with me and my teammates and having that ‘we’re all working together towards this’, and that really bonds you.”

This week, the kids switched from soccer to kickball, and they’re already learning the finer points of strategy.

“If there’s somebody at third base you don’t bunt it,” said Kai. “But if nobody’s out and you’re the first person, bunt it and just run.”

He’s also learning how to be a good teammate.

“I help people, and I’m a very good team member and I check on people a lot.”

The Saskatoon Try-Sport League is in the midway point of the season, but new participants tend to trickle in throughout the summer.