OTTAWA – Wrestling Canada Lutte (WCL) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Frank Fowlie, as WCL’s new Complaints & Appeal Officer, effective October 1, 2020, as part of WCL’s continued commitment to putting in place processes, procedures and policies to help create a safe environment for all participants.

Dr. Fowlie is an accomplished mediator with expertise in conflict resolution. He was previously on the mediation roster with the Court of Arbitration for Sport, as well as a Director with the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada. He is bilingual and also serves as the Commissioner with Athletics Canada.

The role is established to receive, review, and to try to resolve appeals and complaints in six specific areas, which are established in WCL’s Appeal Policy. The Complaints & Appeal Officer has a great deal of discretion in the way they conduct an appeal or complaint review and resolution process. They will work with the parties by providing information, using active listening skills, and by providing suggestions, options or alternatives towards resolution of issues. While the Complaints & Appeal Officer may make final and binding decisions in some cases, they may also use alternative dispute resolution techniques to resolve complaints, where it is appropriate to the circumstances, and the needs and interests of the parties.

WCL maintains a specific email address for the Complaints & Appeal Officer. While this email address is hosted through WCL’s email business account, no one has access to the emails except the Officer. The email address for the Complaints & Appeal Officer is: [email protected].

Please refer to WCL’s Safe Sport page for all the details on the complaints & appeal processes.

An updated report related to the work of WCL’s Safety First Task Force will be forthcoming in the next few weeks.