A Journey to the Top

For so many varsity student-athletes, having the chance to compete and play sport at the university level represents the pinnacle of their sport journey.  The twists and turns student-athletes take to reach the top of their game are numerous, varied and certainly unique to each indivdual’s own experiences in sport.

And, more often than not, there is very little appreciation for the efforts, motivations and inspirations that drive each of these athletes to want to play varsity sport. Like the tip of an iceberg, so much more can be found below the water line.

 

See How She Got Started

Anchored in the efforts to spotlight Ontario University Athletics (OUA) student-athletes, the initiative See How She Got Started showcases and tells the story of how some of the conference’s talented student-athletes first got involved in sport and made their way to the varsity stage on which they currently shine. 

It's also hoped that their stories can inspire young athletes to aspire to compete to be their best as a varsity-level athlete.

 

Storytelling through Q&A

To help facilitate storytelling, each student-athlete was asked eleven questions that addressed a variety of topics. In addition to asking about their study majors, hometowns and years of eligibility, we asked questions that would help them share deeper insights around what they thought of their time in university sport; what excited them about competing in the OUA; and when did they believe they could play at the elite level of their sport. 

We also wanted to know more about how they first got started, what were their fondest memories, and who or what in their lives had inspired them to strive to be their best athletically. 

Finally, we wanted to give each student-athlete an opportunity to share what they thought was unique about their particular sport; the advice they'd give to someone who was thinking about taking up their sport; and what they would say to their 10-year-old self if they could go back in time.  

 

 

Just the Facts: Student-Athlete Survey Summaries

Survey summary statistics are based on the answers received from 90 Student-Athlete respondents who completed and returned our survey.

 

 

Student-Athlete Respondent Statistics

Universities Represented By Student-Athlete Respondents

Algoma University (3)*

McMaster University (19)

Nipissing University (8)

Ontario Tech University (4)

University of Ottawa (6)

Royal Military College of Canada (2)

Toronto Metropolitan University (7)

Trent University (15)

University of Waterloo (7)

Wilfrid Laurier University (12)

University of Windsor (7)

* Number of student-athletes who completed and returned survey

 

Provinces Represented by Student-Athlete Respondents

Alberta

British Columbia

Manitoba

Nova Scotia

Northwest Territories

Ontario*

Quebec

Saskatchewan

* Student-Athletes represented over 50 different communities from across Ontario

 

 

Countries Represented by Student-Athlete Respondents

Canada

Kenya

New Zealand

United States of America

Venezuela

 

 

Current Year of Study/Eligibility for Student-Athlete Respondents

1st Year (19) - 21%

2nd Year (28) - 31%

3rd Year (18) - 20%

4th Year (19) - 21%

5th Year (4) - 4%

6th Year (2) - 2%

 

Sports Represented by Student-Athlete Respondents

Basketball - 8

Cross-Country - 6

Curling - 5

Fencing - 2

Field Hockey - 3

Figure Skating - 2

Golf - 1

Ice Hockey - 9

Lacrosse - 2

Nordic Skiing - 5

Rowing - 3

Rugby - 14

Soccer - 13

Squash - 2

Swimming - 2

Tennis - 2

Track & Field - 2

Volleyball - 7

Wrestling - 2

 

 

University Majors of Student-Athlete Respondents

Science/Tech/Engineering/Mathematics (STEM) - 37

Human Behaviour/Psychology/Sociology - 15

Business & Economics - 12

Criminology/Policing - 6

Nursing - 5

Education - 3

Communications/Media & English - 3

Music Performance - 1

Law - 2

Sport & Recreation - 1

Arts & Contemporary Studies - 1

Physical Education - 2

Urban Planning - 1

Philosophy - 1

 

Photo by Chen on Pixabay

 

In Their Own Words - Student-Athlete Stories

OUA student-athletes shared many thoughtful and insightful feedback to our questions around their journey to varsity sport.  Over the next eleven weeks we will share their stories across multiple sports. We will also share respondent summaries to each progressive survey question posed to student-athletes. We invite you to taket the time to get to know these amazingly talented student-athletes, learn more about what drives them to be their best in their chosen sport and to be inspired by their athletic involvement with the OUA conference.

 

 

Student-Athlete Insights 

Question 1 - How did you first get involved in your sport?

 

 

 

Question 2: What most interested you about your sport that made you want to pursue it at a high level? 

 

 

Question #3: What is your fondest memory/experience of being involved in your sport thus far?  **New Survey Question**

 

**New Stories Under the sport of Hockey!**

 

 

 

Student-Athlete Stories by Sport

Basketball

Sarah Gates - McMaster University

Arianne Soriano - McMaster University

Tiya Misir - Toronto Metropolitan University 

Summer Pahl - University of Waterloo

Emmanuelle Felix - Wilfrid Laurier University 

Janet Rose (Enge) - Wilfrid Laurier University 

Isabella Anes - University of Windsor

Sofia Kennedy - University of Windsor

 

Photo by Mike Martin Photography

 

Fencing

Lauren Lee - Royal Military College of Canada

Hannah Maughan - Royal Military College of Canada

 

 

Field Hockey

Jessica Lim - McMaster University

Angela Ponikvar - McMaster University

Serena Uppal - McMaster University

 

 

Golf

Daneka Miller - University of Waterloo

 

 

Hockey (Week 3 New Stories!)

Ontario Tech University - Nicole Escano

Nipissing University - Bryanne Baker

Nipissing University - Madison Laberge

Nipissing University - Emma Thomas

Nipissing University - Kara den Hoed

Toronto Metropolitan University - Tori Butler

Toronto Metropolitan University - Olivia Giardetti

Toronto Metropolitan University - Erika Crouse

 

 

Track & Field 

Ella Koller - University of Windsor

Ema Kralik - University of Windsor

 

 

Wrestling (New Stories!)

Simi Jayeoba - McMaster University

Olivia Lichti - McMaster University

 

 

SeeWhatSheCanDo

Head to the SWSCD Athlete Advisor, your online athletic business directory. Find, rate and review programs, local community offerings and businesses that will help you do your thing.  

Start a group around a physical activity in your neighbourhood. Explore events. Check out our SWSCD Hub.

Look for advice, stories, news and more on our Active Living activity page.  

Have a sport, recreation or physical activity accomplishment you'd like to celebrate and shout out through SWSCD?  Become a SWSCD member and share your story directly on SeeWhatSheCanDo. Or, simply add the hashtag #seewhatshecando to your public social media posts and SWSCD can help you inspire others around you.