Win Everything: Inside Vickie Croley’s Storybook Final Season at Western
After 32 years leading the Western Mustangs track and field program, head coach Vickie Croley will retire in the summer of 2025—capping one of the most storied careers in U SPORTS track and field history. Having coached hundreds of athletes, led teams to 14 top-three finishes at U SPORTS championships, and captured four national titles across the men’s and women’s divisions, Croley will step away with a CV that stands among the most comprehensive in U SPORTS track and field.
To conclude her career, the Mustangs men's and women's track and field teams won both indoor championships, securing Croley’s first team titles in 13 years. Both squads blew the competition away: Croley’s men were a massive 54 points ahead of second-place Guelph, while the women finished 34 points ahead of the nearest team.
“It certainly was a storybook ending, which we had talked about since the beginning of this year, because we did know that these were two special teams and I think last year we were really strong as well”, said Coach Croley. “We probably weren’t as confident throughout the whole season as usual, just going through the process. Being double OUA champs last year set us up really well.”
Despite some shaken confidence due to illnesses and injuries, especially on the men's side, the goals defined at the beginning of the season remained the same: win everything.
“This was a heavy leadership-driven team and we started right from the beginning of the year putting our team goals together to win a double championship at both OUAs and U SPORTS", said Croley. “I know a few people in our administration or even other coaches from other teams who thought maybe it was a bit bold of us to say that we have a team that can win this championship.”
After coming up short of bringing home a U SPORTS championship the year prior, both teams made adjustments to ensure they arrived healthy on race day. This included resting athletes for OUAs two weeks prior, so that they were fresh for the national championship.
“From my coaching experience, I know that it’s very rare for an athlete to compete well in the heptathlon at OUAs and then two weeks later at U SPORTS. It’s just too many events for them. We pulled two of our top heptathletes, Quinn Cameron and Emanuel Desilets”, said Croley. “We really took a conservative approach to how they competed.”
In the end, the conservative early season approach led to success when it mattered most. The Mustangs secured wins in three 60-metre sprint events, with the titles going to Vivian Ogor (women), Immanuel Onyemah (men), and Natalie Thirsk (women T38). Kenneth West doubled up, earning individual U SPORTS crowns in both the long and triple jump events. Western also won the women’s shot put with a 16.4-metre performance by Liv Sands, the men's 300 with Aaron Thompson’s 34.09 (just ahead of teammate Josh Duckman), the women’s 600 with Favour Okpali’s dominating run, the women's T38 300 (Thirsk again), and the men's 4-by-200. These victories—bolstered by numerous other podium finishes—culminated in a historic double championship for Coach Croley’s crew.
With a perfect final season now complete, Coach Croley reflected on the moments that defined her 32 years at Western:
“It’s hard to pick one proudest moment from a 32-year career at one institution. Becoming head coach of the men’s team alongside the women’s team was a very proud moment and a highlight. I was the first woman head coach for both men and women at Western University."
“We did a 20-year reunion with our women’s team that won in 2002, where they were inducted into our Western Mustangs Sports Hall of Fame. To have all those women come back and be celebrated, to hear how successful they’ve been in life, and to have stayed in touch with them…I’m glad about those winning moments, which are huge accomplishments and memories for me, but I just know the value that it also provides to those individuals, and it’s something that they will have with them for life.”
There’s no official word yet on who will fill the soon-to-be-vacant head coaching role at Western. What is clear: Coach Croley built a winning culture that will carry on and leaves behind a legacy few can rival.
All of us at Streamline Athletes applaud Vickie for a tremendous career, thank her for her contributions to the sport, and wish her health and happiness as she rides her Mustang into the sunset.
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