Western Mustangs

Western Mustangs
Logo
UniversityUniversity of Western Ontario
AssociationU Sports
ConferenceOntario University Athletics
Athletic directorChristine Stapleton
LocationLondon, Ontario
First year1913; 111 years ago (1913)
Varsity teams46 (23 men's and 23 women's)
Football stadiumWestern Alumni Stadium
ArenaThompson Arena
Baseball stadiumLabatt Park
Soccer fieldMustang Field
Aquatics centerWestern Student Rec Centre.
Rugby fieldAlumni Field
Other venuesDoug Wells Rowing Centre
MascotJ.W. the Mustang
NicknameMustangs
Fight song"Western"
ColoursPurple and White
   
Websitewww.westernmustangs.ca

The Western Mustangs are the athletic teams that represent Western University in London, Ontario, Canada. The school's athletic program supports 46 varsity teams. Their mascot is a Mustang named J.W. and the school colours are purple and white. The university's varsity teams compete in the Ontario University Athletics conference and the national U Sports organization.[1][2] Western University offers 21 varsity sports for men and 19 for women which compete in the OUA conference.[1] The university also offers cheerleading (co-ed and all-girls), women's ringette, women's softball, table tennis (men's and women's) and ultimate frisbee (open-class and women's), which compete outside the OUA conference, in sport-specific conferences and divisions.[3][4][5][6][7][8]

The current athletic director is Christine Stapleton, who started at the university in 2017.[9] Her predecessor, Therese Quigley, held the role for 8 years starting in 2009.[10]

Many Western varsity programs lead Canadian universities in the number of championships won. The women's volleyball team has won 10 provincial championships, the rowing team has won 23 provincial championships, the basketball teams have won 24 provincial championships, the football team has won 31 provincial championships and the men's squash team has won 45 provincial championships, with 36 being consecutive. The Western Mustangs football team has won eight Vanier Cup national championships, in 1971, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1989, 1994, 2017 and 2021.[11]

Additionally, the cheerleading team has won the national championship 33 times, including 24 consecutive.[12] The university also has the largest university marching band in Canada.[13]

  1. ^ a b "Ontario University Athletics (OUA)". oua.ca. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  2. ^ "Member Universities". U SPORTS HQ. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  3. ^ "Western Mustangs Sports - Official Athletics Website". Western Mustangs Sports. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  4. ^ "The Home of UONCC". www.powercheerleading.com. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  5. ^ "Welcome to www.canadianuniversityringette.ca". www.canadianuniversityringette.ca. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  6. ^ "Ontario Intercollegiate Women's Fastpitch Association". www.oiwfa.org. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  7. ^ "Teams | NCTTA". www.nctta.org. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  8. ^ "Canadian University Ultimate Championships (CUUC) Series". Ultimate Canada. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  9. ^ McGavin, Jordan. "New athletic director brings ample experience to Western's Sport and Recreation Services". The Gazette • Western University's Student Newspaper. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  10. ^ "Quigley announces her retirement from a storied career in university athletics". Media Relations. Western University. 2016-09-15. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  11. ^ Strong, Gregory (2017-11-26). "2017 Vanier Cup: Western Mustangs beat Laval Rouge et Or 39-17". Montreal Gazette. The Canadian Press. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  12. ^ Heuvelmans, Jordan (November 3, 2019). "Meet coach Trace: He's been leading Western's cheerleading teams for 40 years". CBC News.
  13. ^ "Big night for the Western Mustangs marching band - CBC Player". Archived from the original on 2019-04-03.