Goal Oriented
June 30, 2026
UVic Human Performance grad Greg Bay, BSc ’84, started as a student trainer on campus. He’s now at the heart of the action as Head of Medical for Team Canada at the FIFA World Cup.
When Ismaël Koné broke his leg during Canada’s World Cup win against Qatar, Greg Bay was one of the first on the scene. He accompanied Koné as he was carried off on a stretcher while the midfielder waved to a roaring hometown crowd in Vancouver.
Bay can be seen at Koné’s side, grim-faced, in the images that were shared around the world. Canada would experience an exhilarating 6-0 victory, but Koné suffered a horrific injury—and when that happens, Bay and his team get to work.
Bay, who graduated from UVic with a Bachelor of Science in Education (Physical Education/Exercise Physiology) in 1984, got his start as a student trainer with Vikes Soccer. He’s grateful to then-Vikes coach Brian Hughes for giving him a start in 1980, which in turn led to work with Bruce Twamley, who went on to coach the Canadian Youth Teams and Team Canada for over 20 years.
Bay, 65, has worked with the men’s national team in various capacities since 1985.
“It all began by taking the Athletic Injuries course in 1980 under the guidance of Dan Devlin and later Brian Gastaldi,” Bay recalls. “I started my on-field career as a student trainer for the Vikes men’s soccer team. Mostly, because many players were my friends from residence. The team included future Team Canada players Jamie Lowery and Ian Baird. Lowery went on to play for Canada in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.”
Bay later earned a degree in physiotherapy from UBC in 1987. Step by step, he has worked to the very top of his game.
“My beginnings at UVic allowed me to be asked to be a trainer in the spring of 1984 for the Canadian Olympic men’s soccer selections that were held at CFB Esquimalt,” Bay says. “From there, I have attended three World Youth Soccer Tournaments: 1984 Russia, 1986 Chile and 1997 Malaysia. Then onto many tournaments and games as the sports physiotherapist for the Senior Men’s Team.”
Bay’s participation in this year’s World Cup has garnered him and his medical team international attention. The Globe and Mail recently ran the story “Meet Greg Bay, the medical expert who calmed the chaos when Ismaël Koné was hurt,” while New York Times’ sports outlet The Athletic profiled Bay and his team (“From Davies’ hamstring to Kone’s leg break: does Canada have the World Cup’s busiest medical team?”).
According to the story, Bay’s calm and outgoing demeanour has become a source of happiness for Team Canada, and he’s been known to take extra food left uneaten by the team to homeless shelters.
The article goes on to describe a sign Bay designed that hangs in the team’s medical room featuring a red maple leaf below the words “We are Canada for f—’s sake.”