Harsh words for the Canadian government both from the Michigan judge who sentenced the former USA Gymnastics team doctor to life in prison in 2018, and from the most decorated women's tennis champion of all time.

Judge Rosemarie Aquilina, who presided over the sexual abuse trial of Larry Nassar, spoke Thursday at the University of New Haven's 2023 Noble Cause Awards for Sports Integrity online ceremony.

The Liberal government was selected to receive the Disgraceful Purpose Award for demonstrating the worst principles in the world of sport over the past year, as it refused to hold a public inquiry into abuse and corruption in Canadian sport. The runner-up was a fixture in the Balkan countries and the PGA Tour, for joining the Saudi-backed LIV circuit despite pleas from the families of 9/11 victims.

Aquilina told how he testified before a House of Commons committee last June and was disappointed that Canada won the award in the same category as 2022 FIFA World Cup host Qatar.

“My pleas for help, action and the safety of all athletes fell on deaf ears,” Aquilina said. “I don't think we've seen many athletes in any country come together and call for help, call for an investigation to get to the bottom of why abuse is so rampant in Canada. Yes, Canada, a country known internationally as a country that practices sexual harassment. Canada is not a safe place for athletes. Canada is not a safe place for children competing in sports.”

He said that the Canadian government's inaction means they “continue to act as co-conspirators in the abuse experienced by athletes of all ages.”

“Safety is a human right. Security is not a question mark. Security should not be neglected. But Canada did not take any action,” Aquilina said.

Declan Hill, a professor who heads the Center for Sports Integrity at the University of Connecticut, said it was difficult to listen to Aquilina's speech because he is Canadian, but “even more difficult to realize that every syllable you said was true.”

In late July, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau kicked Pascale St-Onge out of the sports ministry and into Canadian Heritage, where she spearheaded the government's politically charged Online News Act. During his tenure as sports minister, St-Onge temporarily froze funding for high-profile organizations facing allegations of abuse, such as Hockey Canada, and introduced reforms, including a new Office of the Sports Integrity Commissioner. But he did not launch a public inquiry.

Delta MP Carla Qualtrough returned as sports minister at the end of July. The lawyer and former Paralympic swimmer served in the role during the first half of Trudeau's first term.

In a September interview with the Canadian Press, Qualtrough was noncommittal about the investigation but acknowledged that “trust in sports leaders, trust in sports organizations has been eroded and there is a lack of trust in the system.”

Meanwhile, Czech-born tennis legend Martina Navratilova slammed the Canadian government in her Noble Cause Award acceptance speech. Even while battling cancer earlier this year, Navratilova remained active in campaigning for equal pay, protection from harassment, inclusivity for gay and lesbian athletes, and to keep male-born athletes out of women's and girls' sports competitions.

“You know, it's funny that Canada gets this award, for this disgraceful award, for refusing to allow victims of sexual assault to speak out in athletics, and at the same time, putting the rights of trans women ahead of female athletes,” Navratilova said.

In her acceptance speech, Navratilova emphatically said that “we are not anti-trans, we are pro-women, pro-sports, pro-justice, pro-equality. And we must find ways to make everyone welcome, but not at the expense of justice for women and girls.”

Runners up were Kenyan activist Malcolm Bidali, who exposed labor abuses in Qatar before the World Cup, and Vinicius Junior, a Brazilian-born Real Madrid player and anti-racism advocate.

A year ago, the inaugural winner was a Canadian – University of Western Ontario sports law professor Richard McLaren, who investigated state-sponsored sports doping in Russia.

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