Empowering Youth Through Sport
Inspiring young athletes to achieve their potential in athletics and life.
We offer a variety of events. See below for details.
Welcome to Canada, On Your Mark
At Canada, On Your Mark, we empower youth through sports. Our mission is to foster young student athletes by providing memorable experiences that enhance their physical fitness, teamwork, and goal-setting skills. Allow us to help create a positive impact in the life of your child today!
About Canada, On Your Mark
Our Mission
At Canada, On Your Mark, we strive to enable youth through sports. Our programs, include sports camps and football camps that focus on building confidence and essential life skills that extend beyond the playing field, all while making fun the focus.
Our Goal
Our goal is to provide a fun environment for children of all abilities to engage, learn, and play sports. Every child should experience teamwork, goal setting, overcoming obstacles, competition, failure and success in a safe space like sports camps. We use sport to compliment a traditional education, with life skills they will use forever.
Our History
Originally, my childhood friend and I started Grassroots Prospects. We wanted to give back to the youth sports community that gave us both opportunities and skills that we carry to this day. We ran combines, football camps, sports camps, educational seminars, and trips for student athletes and their families. We worked with hundreds of athletes and a most of them managed to make it on to University, with some even making it to Division I, and eventually the pros (including the CFL and NFL). When we both started our own families, we hung up our cleats with GRP, yet maintained our positions as youth coaches. Today, my mission begins again and I look forward to serving you and your family!
Our People
All of our staff have passed a background check and have attended CPR and First Aid training. Each is vested in your child's success on and off the field, while ensuring they have a great experience.
Our Facility
We utilize a fully enclosed turf facility at 72 Orchard Rd, in Ajax, Ontario. This facility includes a washroom, full size field, equipment, and an outdoor pitch as well. This allows us to play regardless of weather!
Our Safety
We are fully trained and insured for your peace of mind. We follow all provincial summer camp regulations and also separate ages and abilities to ensure your child's success and calm their nerves!
My Journey to Giving Back
Sports is in my blood. My grandfather Bud Marquardt, was a top athlete in Minnesota and eventually at North Dakota State University. He was inducted into the NDSU Hall of Fame in the 80's and he played several sports including, Track and Field, Golf, Basketball, and Football. Upon graduation, he was offered a position on the Winnipeg BlueBombers where he helped the West win their first ever Grey Cup in 1935, with another in 1939 and 1941. He was also inducted to the Bluebomber HOF.
I continued in his footsteps as a multi-sport athlete throughout Middle and Highschool, playing Soccer, Basketball, Volleyball and Football. I was chosen to represent Toronto as an All-Star by the Toronto Star in football as a back-to-back MVP for the Victoria Park Panthers, and won 3 GLFL Championships with the Scarborough Thunder Football Club while also being named a GLFL All-Star.
I then attended Acadia University where we won an AUA Championship and The University of Waterloo where we won an OUA championship.
After my playing days were done, I coached with the Pickering Soccer Club, Scarborough Thunder, Pickering Dolphins, and Oshawa Hawkeyes as a way to give back to the sport. Today, I have returned to coaching with the Durham Dolphins, where my son is a player.
Over the last 27 years, I have also raised over $50,000 towards helping underprivileged youth play sports, through an annual Memorial Golf Tournament in honour of my biggest supporter, my Father, who passed when I was 18 due to Cancer.
Our Partners
