Earlier this year, I wrote a profile on one of UBC’s premier athletes, multi-time Canada West all-star in women’s basketball Mona Berlitz. While she’s become a staple of the T-Birds in her four years with the team, Berlitz hadn’t even visited Vancouver until she was 16. Hailing from the small town of Schrobenhausen, Germany, playing university basketball nearly 8,000 kilometres away from home — on a campus with a student body more than three times larger than the population of her hometown — was quite the jump.
While many of UBC’s players are local — often coming from within the province or neighbouring provinces like Alberta or Saskatchewan — the Thunderbirds come from across the world, not just from British Columbia or Canada.
Berlitz surely wasn’t the only athlete with a unique origin story. After finishing that article, I was left wondering: how have other athletes found their way to UBC?
The answers varied greatly.
I started my search with another athlete from Europe. While Berlitz came from Germany, newly-minted Canada West Rookie of the Year in women’s soccer, Sophie Harrison, was a bit closer to Canada. Marginally. Harrison is from Bedford, England, and like many others in her home country, she started playing soccer at a young age. It didn’t take long for her to stand out.
After playing for boys’ teams until age 16, Harrison began preparing to play for an elite professional club: Arsenal. In an exhibition match against Arsenal’s girls academy team, Harrison’s play stood out to the Arsenal coaches, and she was invited to try out for the team. By joining the Arsenal U16 academy, Harrison would be instantly surrounded by some of the best players and coaches in the country. But still, making that shift wasn’t an easy decision.
Sixteen is a young age to join a club at that level, and to devote the amount of time needed would require sacrifice. She forewent playing for a high school team. She had to balance her time at the academy with her regular studies as well. But for Harrison, committing to Arsenal was serious.
“[To take] the journey to the top, you need to be in an academy,” said Harrison. "[In] England, it's the top level for girls and boys in soccer … I had to obviously skip lots of school to play for the academy, so it was a big commitment.”
That commitment paid off. Harrison found early success with Arsenal, growing her game individually and winning the FA Cup, the biggest trophy in her age group, with her team. Her time at the academy quickly brought her recognition on the international stage, placing her on the U17 and U19 England teams and drawing the attention of scouts.
This left Harrison with a choice. She could continue playing in England, with the chance to potentially go pro right away, or she could continue to pursue her academic career.
After finishing her last season with the U18 team, she was offered an extension to continue with the academy which would have allowed her to sign with a team in the third tier of professional women’s soccer in the UK. She didn’t take it. Her degree came first.
That desire to go to university would end up taking her to North America. She started her search in the United States, but eventually, Harrison’s open-mindedness to leaving home for the first time would land her at UBC.
After getting in contact with coach Jesse Symons, who had expressed interest in her, a potential move to British Columbia came on Harrison’s radar. While she could have signed with any number of potential schools, there were a few factors that sealed the deal for her to become a Thunderbird.
“[First,] the success of the program … I knew I was going to be playing with great players,” she said. “[Also,] I’m a big outdoorsy hiker. I love the outdoors, so obviously the location of BC [was] perfect for me. Then, obviously the academics along with that.”
On the field, Harrison was a quick study. She immediately slid into the top back line in the country, acting as a key part of a defence that didn’t allow a single goal in the regular season. That production led Harrison to win the conference’s Rookie of the Year award, continuing a streak of three-straight Thunderbirds defenders who have earned that nod.
For Harrison, it’s all about building upon that success while adjusting to a new country. And while there was some initial trepidation around the move, the shift to Canada has not been much of an issue, thanks in large part to the welcoming nature of the team.
“I was definitely apprehensive, because it's a new country. I've never been away from home for this long,” said Harrison.
“When I arrived, obviously I was nervous … [but] everyone was so welcoming, and it didn’t take long for me to fit into the group and be myself. I think that really helped early on.”
Harrison’s foundation in her sport was constructed by one of the most famous soccer academies in the world. For T-Birds quarterback Drew Viotto, however, the development could not have been more different.
Viotto’s first season with Thunderbirds football mirrored the journey that brought him to UBC. Like much of his career, the year began with uncertainty. He was forced to split reps through the first few games and got benched at multiple points in the season. However, by its conclusion, Viotto had established himself as a premier starting quarterback in Canada West.
After growing up in Ontario, Viotto moved to the United States, playing high school football in Michigan. It was there that he received his first NCAA D-I offer for football in the ninth grade. The offers only continued to grow, and being largely recruited by American universities, Viotto wrapped up his high school career with ten Division I offers.
Eventually, Viotto made his choice and started his college career at the University of Minnesota but his time with the Golden Gophers didn’t last long. After his first year, he left Minnesota, transferring to Eastern Michigan University after the coach that had initially recruited him left to coach at Rutgers.
“Things just didn't really work out with me in the program,” said Viotto. “I didn't feel like I was going to get a fair chance to play, and I decided it was best for me and my future to transfer.”
While having to leave Minnesota was unexpected, the move to Eastern Michigan was intentional. Having been recruited by them out of high school and knowing that the same coaching staff was present, Viotto felt the school would be a good fit. Unfortunately after only a year, things at Eastern Michigan did not go according to plan either.
“They brought in multiple quarterbacks, and it just didn't work out.”
Viotto sat out the entire year. Even though the lack of playing time was frustrating, it left him with an array of options moving forward. Having preserved all years of his college eligibility, Viotto was now looking for stability. Instead of continuing to bounce around the NCAA, he decided to return to Canada.
Viotto had previously contacted UBC’s recruiting coordinator, Shomari Williams, while he was being recruited out of high school, and he reached back out to Williams in the off-season last year. After speaking to Williams and head coach Blake Nill to determine if the team needed a quarterback — which they did — he was sold.
“I decided to commit without even visiting,” he said. “I did some research and knew it was beautiful, and [when] I came out here in early July, I was very happy with my decision.”
After finally touching the field for the first time in his university career, starting out hot with an upset win against the Manitoba Bisons, Viotto quickly found himself back on the bench. In a 51–14 shellacking by the Saskatchewan Huskies, he was replaced by fifth-year quarterback Derek Engel, with whom he would split time on the field for the next two games.
However, by season’s end, Viotto had earned the starting role he had been chasing his whole career. Throwing over 400 yards in two of his final four games and helping the T-Birds clinch a playoff spot, Viotto established himself as one of the most deadly quarterbacks in the conference.
Now, Viotto is looking forward to his remaining three years as a Thunderbird.
“I feel like we’ve got a good group, and we're going to be very successful,” he said. “I'm not planning on rushing out of UBC at all. I want to finish my degree, and I plan on using all three years.”
While both Viotto and Harrison earned their spots as some of UBC’s most promising young players through a lifelong commitment to their respective sports, Women’s Rugby’s third-year hooker, Kiki Idowu, has taken the opposite route.
Idowu is a member of the UBC women’s rugby team, has played on the Canadian Women’s Rugby National team, and continues to represent Canada as a wrestler, recently competing at the Pan-Am games. She also takes a full course load. For Idowu, one challenge has never been enough.
Even from the beginning, she was juggling multiple sports. After arriving in Canada at four years old, her parents got her athletic journey started by having her play hockey.
“My parents were like ‘the most Canadian thing you can do is play hockey,’ so they put me in hockey,” said Idowu. “That was followed by gymnastics and track. Honestly, every single sport that exists, I probably have played.”
Idowu’s openness to trying new sports is also what eventually led her to rugby. In middle school, while playing for the flag football team, she was introduced to rugby by her coach, who had played the sport himself. After showing Idowu some of his highlights from his playing days, he encouraged her to join a team once she reached high school.
“As soon as I got into high school, luckily, there was a team. I joined, and honestly, I haven't looked back.”
Around the same time, Idowu also picked up wrestling, a sport she continues to compete and win championships in to this day. While many elite athletes decide early on to commit to one sport, for Idowu, the challenge of playing multiple sports keeps her in the game.
“Both wrestling and rugby are combat sports, both involve some crazy amounts of athleticism, and crazy amounts of dedication,” she said. “To be a wrestler, you have to be crazy fit, crazy strong, and also crazy skilled. All those assets make me a better rugby player.”
Idowu’s ambition is perhaps best demonstrated in how she arrived at UBC. Instead of being contacted by recruiters, Idowu took matters into her own hands. While she could have attended a rugby program closer to home in Ontario, she was looking for a fresh start. At the time, UBC women’s rugby didn’t recruit as much from Eastern Canada. After Idowu, that changed.
“I essentially reached out to Dean, because he didn't necessarily look at Ontario athletes that much until my year … I think I might have been part of the reason why he started looking out east just a bit more,” she said.
And, as always for Idowu, she was steadfast in her decision to commit to UBC despite having her pick of the litter. Schools from Ontario, including Queens and Guelph, were interested in recruiting her, but they didn’t feel right. Even schools from outside of the country came calling, with three Ivy Leagues reaching out to Idowu. But after visiting UBC in September of 2022, she had made up her mind.
“I kind of knew that this was the school for me. I didn't apply to any other school, it was just UBC.”
Since arriving at UBC in 2023, Idowu and the women’s rugby program have achieved tremendous success, capturing back-to-back U Sports National Championships, with their most recent victory coming on home turf last season. It’s been a rewarding experience for Idowu, especially considering the company she has surrounding her as a member of the team. She’s been teammates with Olympians like Sara Kaljuvee, Charity Williams, Piper Logan, Florence Symonds and Shalaya Valenzuela during her time at UBC — and some of her idols have become her mentors.
“When I first started playing rugby, obviously I looked up to quite a few people who were on that Olympic team, and then it turns out that they're my teammates,” she said. “The ones that really bought into the program … raised the level of play and competition.”
Now, for Idowu, it’s all about continued improvement and achieving her goals. She hopes to one day represent Canada at the Olympics in rugby or wrestling and is currently on track to graduate in four years. She also hopes to one day work in medicine and sees no reason why she can’t do it all.
“I know that I am someone who, if I want to [do something], I'll get it. I'll do med school and play rugby at the same time … the goal hasn't really changed much.”
While Idowu has found success playing multiple sports, for men’s hockey forward Ty Thorpe, hockey has always been the answer. Long before arriving at Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, Thorpe spent years navigating the complicated world of junior hockey in Canada. Thorpe developed a passion for hockey early in his childhood — much like many Canadian children — and first began playing at just four years old in his hometown of Brandon, Manitoba. Following in the footsteps of his older brother, Thorpe fell in love with the game, playing outdoors in his home’s backyard rink.
“From pretty early on, I was pretty sure [hockey] was what I wanted to do when I was older,” he said.
In order to take that step, Thorpe would have to find his way in junior hockey. To those who are unfamiliar, the junior hockey circuit is particularly intense when it comes to youth development programs for athletes. It’s not uncommon for kids to move away from home for extended periods of time and stay with billet families in order to play for different clubs. While it’s a lot to sacrifice, it’s a necessary stepping-stone for young Canadian players to eventually get the opportunity to play in the NHL.
The intensity and grind of the system is unparalleled. Recruiting begins at a young age, and players must choose early on to commit to hockey, essentially as a career path. For Thorpe, his story was no different.
After playing Bantam in his hometown when he was 13 years old, he already had his first agent. He was being actively recruited. The same year, he moved a two-hour drive away to Winnipeg’s Rink Hockey Academy to pursue hockey.
“It's crazy how young you are when you're going through all that and having to make those big decisions,” he said. “Looking back, you realize how young and naive you [were].”
That move paid off though, and the next level of junior — the CHL — came calling. In 2017, Thorpe was drafted to the Victoria Royals of the WHL, and while it was a big step toward the pros, Victoria was a lot further away from Brandon. He was forced to make a choice: would he move cross-country to pursue his dream?
Luckily for Thorpe, however, soon after the draft, he was traded to his home team, the Brandon Wheat Kings. This provided him with the opportunity to pursue the WHL without having to move provinces at just 16. He would stay with the Wheat Kings for three years before being traded back to British Columbia and spending his final two years in the WHL with the Vancouver Giants.
Thorpe’s stint in Vancouver ultimately paid off academically as well, as it exposed him to UBC at a time when he was fielding countless offers from other top university programs. UBC head coach Sven Butenschon reached out to him after attending a Giants game, and while he had plenty of options to choose from, it was the T-Birds who eventually sealed the deal for Thorpe. That decision didn’t come easily, however.
“You go from being drafted, and that's your team, to … being recruited, and you have all these options,” he said. “You just try and figure out what the best situation is for you … you’ve just got to trust your gut.”
In the end, Thorpe found a home with the men’s hockey team. He’s coming off a breakout season with the ‘Birds, scoring 38 points in only 31 games, the second-highest on the team. While next year will be a transition year for Men’s Hockey, with many graduating seniors leaving the team, for Thorpe, the connections he’s made with his teammates will last far beyond graduation.
Looking back on his long journey to campus, when asked what advice he would have imparted on himself in the early days of his recruiting process, the answer was clear.
“The biggest thing is just to lean on your friends and your family and those close to you when you need guidance. Enjoy it, even when it is not going your way, because you're going to miss it,” he said.
There is no “correct” path to representing UBC. Some athletes arrive in Vancouver fresh out of secondary school without ever looking back, while others need time in other places before settling down. All of the athletes I interviewed faced challenges on their road to becoming a Thunderbird. There’s always uncertainty. There’s always branching paths and what-could-have-beens. In the end, however, it doesn’t seem to be the individual steps in the journey that matter, but the determination it requires to take them.
“If you follow your dreams, you stay true to yourself, you'll find success, [even if] you don't necessarily know what that looks like,” said Thorpe. “There's going to be hard decisions. I think you just need to make them, and then commit to them.”
