Message from Athletics
Championship Winning Ringette (National, left) and Figure Skating (OUA Provincial, right)
It has been a busy year once again for the Western Mustangs. But what a ride!
In January, we launched our new Sports & Recreation Strategic Plan: Game Plan: 2023-2028 and established our vision: to create communities of belonging where all Western Mustangs thrive. Thank you for your contributions and input throughout the process. We value your perspectives and collaboration as we position Western University Sports & Recreation as a national leader. We look forward to sharing updates about our path forward.
I am excited to share the news that Catherine Ireland (CJ) will be joining our team starting May 29, as our new Director, Sport. This is a role that oversees our coaches and our sport department, and reports into me. We are very pleased to have CJ join our team in this instrumental role. She will help further our strategic priorities, working with the coaches and Sport staff to continue to develop a transformational student athlete experience.
Our Western Mustangs teams took home an amazing eight provincial and national championship titles and had 118 student-athletes named Ontario University Athletics (OUA) All-Stars in 2022-23.
> The Mustangs ringette team became provinical champions, winning the University Challenge Cup and went on to take home the National Championship title
> Mustangs football won the Yates Cup for the second year in a row
> Women's rowing won the OUA banner for the fifth time in six years
> Men's tennis won their OUA banner for the second year in a row
> Women's tennis won their OUA banner for the second year in a row
> Men's Squash continued their unprescedented streak with their 39th consecutive OUA title
In addition, we had three national silver medal finishes in women’s golf, softball, and track & field.
We often speak about the role that sport plays in the student experience at Western, but I would also like to highlight the impact that so many of our student-athletes have had on our community. They make Western one of the most athletically dominant schools in the nation, ranking second in Canada for Academic All Canadians this year, and first place in Canada for four out of the last six years. Four hundred and twenty-seven of our student-athletes achieved more than an 80 per cent average while competing on a varsity team last year. We have seen an increase of 11 per cent over the last nine years in the number of Mustangs who achieved scholar-athlete status, which we attribute to the amazing dedication of our student-athletes to their academic and athletic pursuits.
In addition, Kate Current (track & field and cross-country) was selected and recognized in January as one of U SPORTS Top 8 Academic All-Canadians.
I am also incredibly proud of how our student-athletes are such strong supporters of our community. So many of our athletes volunteer with our Mustangs Athletes Students’ Council, Mustangs Care, community groups, charities, and local youth sports teams. They take the initiative to organize and participate in drives and events outside of sport competition – including recent food and sock drives. They work hard to promote and support innovation and positive change.
The accomplishments of our Mustangs are a source of pride for alumni and the wider Western community. They consistently serve as a positive influence and raise the bar by engaging both on campus and within the London community.
We also are extremely grateful to have some of the best coaches in the country here at Western. Having been an athlete and a coach myself, I know firsthand the formative role coaches play in the lives of our athletes. They often go above and beyond what is required and expected, working tirelessly to improve our programs and support our student athletes.
We had six of our teams (eight of our coaches) receive OUA Coach of the Year recognition this past season:
> For the second year in a row, Cameron Cross and Anthony Glavanic won for men’s tennis
> Chantal Forristal and Maciek Gebczynski for women’s tennis
> Ian MacLeod for men’s rugby
> Greg Marshall for football
> Paul Midgley for swimming
> Martin Painter for women’s soccer
Congratulations to these coaches and to ALL our Mustangs coaches. We recognize the incredible job they do for our Mustangs every day.
I am so purple and proud of the strong support that we get from our Mustangs Alumni, the WMAA. It was great to see some of you at our 82nd annual Mustangs Awards Celebration on April 6, where we recognized our top student-athletes for the year. You can read more about the winners and their accomplishments here. I also enjoyed seeing many of you at our Rowing Gala, our Football Wall of Champions event, and our Hockey Hall of Fame events over the past couple of months. We have several more fun alumni events coming up over the next few months where I look forward to continuing to see and connect with many of you.
We have several fun alumni events coming up over the next few months where I look forward to seeing and connecting with many of you. I also look forward to welcoming many of our alumni back to campus for Homecoming 2023, which will be held the weekend of September 22-24, 2023.
I am pleased to announce we were successful in our bid and named the host for the 2023 U SPORTS Cross-Country Championships in the fall. More details will be available on @WesternMustangs social channels as we get closer to that exciting event.
Wishing you a safe and wonderful summer.
