BURNABY – The Thunderbirds have their sights on again taking the title of best in the west at the 2026 Western Canadian Championships, hosted by UBC at Burnaby Lake on Saturday, October 3.
Eight teams are set to compete at this year's edition, with the T-Birds joined by Mount Royal, SFU, Calgary, Lethbridge, Saskatchewan, UFV and Victoria. UBC are the defending champs on both the men's and women's sides, with the T-Bird men aiming to make it four wins in a row at the annual event.
The races start at 9:30 a.m. and finish around 4:00 p.m. (PT). There are over a dozen different finals to compete in, and the competition will be fierce.
"Training has been very consistent thus far with a lot of extra effort being put in by most of the team," said Craig Pond, head coach of the UBC women's team. "Although it is very early in the season we are looking forward to the speed check that this weekend will provide."
The Thunderbird men are coming off a fantastic 2025-26 campaign, where they claimed victory in all three of the Western Canadian Championships, Canadian University Championships, and the Brown Cup.
The women's squad, meanwhile, took first-place in two of those three competitions, only falling short in the Canadian University Championships. Both teams will be aiming to use this weekend's action to build towards nationals next month, happening on November 7 and 8 in London, Ontario.
This first major regatta of the fall also serves as an important testing ground for the large contingent of young T-Birds. Between the men's and women's rosters, the blue and gold boast an incredible 19 athletes in their first year of eligibility.
"We had a large group of athletes graduate this past spring, so the team has a very different look to it this fall," added Pond. "Our returning athletes are joined by a mix of first years and a couple transfers that have nicely rounded out our 26-27 squad.
"The chemistry of the team is coming together, and we are excited to see how we match up this weekend. There is still a long way to nationals and we expect that this group will continue to gel as the season goes on."
Thunderbirds both new and experienced will aim to start this season off on a strong note this Saturday, as they take to the water at Burnaby Lake.
