Respected Vikes leader departs for new position

It is with incredibly mixed emotions that I announce that Clint Hamilton, Senior Director of Athletics and Recreation (ATRS) at UVic, will be stepping down from his role on April 1, 2022 to accept the position of Vice-President Advancement at the University of New Brunswick (UNB). Since joining ATRS in 2005, Clint has been a committed leader, student advocate, and community citizen, representing our institution with tremendous energy, professionalism, and pride.

During his tenure, Clint’s list of accomplishments is enormous—both for our campus and for sport across Canada. As a respected leader in Canadian sport, Clint has served as Canada West President (2008-10, 2018-20) and the President of Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) the former U SPORTS (2008-10). He has worked diligently to position our institution as a leader in high-performance sport, spearheading the campaign to bring the 2020 FIBA Olympic Qualifying basketball tournament to Victoria and participating in a number of external reviews of athletic and recreation departments across Canada. 

Closer to home, Clint was instrumental in bringing the Centre for Athletics, Recreation, and Special Abilities (CARSA) to life for UVic. He led this eight-year, $70 million infrastructure project, recognizing its potential to raise UVic’s profile in the sports scene worldwide. His vision was realized when our state-of-the-art facilities became a training ground for the Toronto Raptors in 2017 and home for the Women’s National Collegiate Athletics Coalition (NCAA) tournament in 2019 while hosting women’s national championship events for both U SPORTS and Canada Basketball. Moreover, the centre exemplifies UVic’s commitments to high-performance sport and active, healthy living. It’s a destination for students, staff, faculty and community and home to amateur sport throughout the region.

With Clint at the helm, UVic has won 25 national championships over the past 17 years—a feat that only a handful of schools in the country have achieved. While his championship legacy is notable, his impact on the sports community is even more significant. From hosting numerous national championships, driving expanded youth programming to intramural and club sports on campus, Clint has established UVic as a hub for athletics and recreation events and programming on the South Island.

As a two-time Academic All-Canadian scholar student-athlete, Clint understands the student-athlete experience and has worked tirelessly to strengthen student success at UVic. In 2008 he launched the Vikes Championship Breakfast in support of student-athlete scholarships. Since its inception, the event has generated just under $8M and is the largest annual fundraising event for the Vikes.

Clint is a proud UVic alumnus and has helped to build a thriving alumni community here. His rich experience in community building, engagement and fundraising will serve him well in his new role at UNB.

While we are sad to see Clint go, both he and I know that once you’re a Vike, you’re always a Vike. He’ll always have a place in our hearts at UVic. We wish him nothing but good fortune in his new role.

—Jim Dunsdon
Associate VP Student Affairs, University of Victoria