The original CIAU Central was founded in 1906 and was disbanded by 1955, soon to be replaced by a new Canadian Intercollegiate Athletic Union (CIAU) in 1961. Originally, the organization was run out of the office RMC’s Major W.J. McLeod, a founding member of the new union. In 2001, its name was changed to Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), due to misconceptions about the use of the words “Athletic” and “Union.” On October 20th 2016, on the 110th anniversary of Canadian university sports, U Sports was unveiled. The U Sports brand aims to create a massive change in the way Canadians see university sports in the digital era. Visit the U Sports Website here.
Fun Facts:
Western’s teams have won a total of 34 national championships. Below are some fun facts about the breakdown of those banners:
Most National Championships for a Western program:
Cross Country (11); Football (7); Track and Field (5).
First National Championship:
Men’s Cross Country (1970-71) or Men’s Basketball (1951-52) depending on how you define “national.” While the basketball team did win the first Dominion championship against the Golden Bears in 1952 and the football team did win the 1959 East-West Winston Churchill Bowl against the UBC Thunderbirds, neither event was sponsored by a national organization. When Bob Vigars and the cross country team pulled off their victory in 1970, they were the first Western team to win a CIAU-sponsored event in the history of the university.
Below is a list of all the teams to win CIAU-sponsored national events in Western’s sporting history.
| Team Picture | Year | Gender | Sport |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 1970-71 | Men's | Cross Country |
| 1971-72 | Men's | Cross Country | |
 | 1971-72 | Men's | Football |
 | 1971-72 | Women's | Volleyball |
 | 1974-75 | Women's | Volleyball |
 | 1974-75 | Men's | Football |
 | 1975-76 | Women's | Volleyball |
 | 1976-77 | Men's | Cross Country |
 | 1976-77 | Men's | Football |
 | 1976-77 | Mixed | Waterpolo |
 | 1977-78 | Men's | Football |
| 1980-81 | Women's | Track and Field | |
 | 1981-82 | Women's | Cross Country |
| 1981-82 | Women's | Track and Field | |
 | 1982-83 | Women's | Cross Country |
 | 1982-83 | Women's | Track and Field |
 | 1983-84 | Women's | Cross Country |
 | 1984-85 | Women's | Cross Country |
 | 1985-86 | Men's | Cross Country |
 | 1988-89 | Women's | Cross Country |
 | 1989-90 | Women's | Cross Country |
 | 1989-90 | Men's | Football |
 | 1989-90 | Men's | Wrestling |
 | 1990-91 | Women's | Cross Country |
 | 1990-91 | Men's | Basketball |
 | 1994-95 | Men's | Football |
 | 1998-99 | Men's | Soccer |
 | 1999-00 | Men's | Soccer |
 | 2001-02 | Men's | Ice Hockey |
 | 2001-02 | Women's | Track and Field |
 | 2004-05 | Women's | Rugby |
 | 2005-06 | Women's | Rugby |
 | 2011-12 | Men's | Track and Field |
 | 2014-15 | Women's | Ice Hockey |
 | 2017-18 | Men's | Football |