The Warriors Varsity Giving Challenge is back for another year of friendly competition against UW’s top student varsity teams. Varsity teams compete in reaching donor goals in hopes of becoming the top varsity sport to meet their goals and earn even more funding for their respective teams. Thanks to the generous contributions of Laura Sylvah, Manager of Therapy Services, Athletics and Recreation, and Eric Celentano (BSc ’79), additional cash prizes for teams who reach their donor goals are awarded.
Teams can receive the bonus cash in one of four ways:
- The varsity team with the highest number of donors earns a bonus $1,000 for their team
- The varsity team with the highest number of dollars earned receives $1,000 for their team
- Every varsity team meeting their personal donor goal automatically receives $250
- Every varsity team meeting their personal donor goal in entered into a raffle to win a bonus $500
Some notable regulations to keep things fair include only permitting one donation per person, per team that is considered by the end of the challenge. The Varsity Giving Challenge ended on Thursday, May 15 at 11:59 p.m. All donations support Waterloo Warriors as teams prepare for their respective 2025/2026 training seasons.
Now, for the results! The team with the highest number of donors goes to UW’s track and field team, with an impressive 112 donors. The runner up in this category was women’s figure skating, with 71 donors. Next up, the men’s rugby team dug deep and rose to the top with a high of $8,610 raised! The closest runner up here was men’s football which came behind in a close second place, raising $7,556.
Congratulations to all of UW’s varsity sports teams and a thank you to the donors. Through resilience and generosity, our UW sports teams are set to pursue another season of athletic excellence – whether it’s on the track, arena, or pool.
