LANGLEY, B.C. – The Trinity Western University Spartans have been approved to become the first university athletics program in Canada to operate women's and men's varsity disc golf teams, with the burgeoning sport set to come under the departments umbrella starting this Fall. 

TWU will be targeting a minimum of six athletes for the fall to gain varsity status within the Spartans athletic department for the 2022-23 season. 

"We see disc golf as a sport for the future and are pleased to bring disc golf to TWU," said TWU Director of Athletics Jeff Gamache. "We look forward to playing a leading role in establishing the sport in other colleges and universities, and we hope to encourage its growth within Canada West and U SPORTS. The sport of disc golf is going through explosive growth as a competitive sport and mainstream recreational activity.  Within TWU Athletics, we are always looking for opportunities to provide a high-performance sport environment coupled with faith integration."

The Spartans teams will be coached by disc golf professional Chris Hartmann, who has represented Canada internationally and helped Team Canada win the World Team Disc Golf Championship in 2017. 

As a professional disc golfer since 2014, Hartmann, who is an alum of the Spartans men's volleyball program and graduated in 1986, has competed in over 85 Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) sanctioned events across North America and in Europe. This summer, Hartmann will once again represent Canada at the World Team Disc Golf Championship in Croatia.  

Hartmann is a director with the society that built and now maintains the prestigious Raptors Knoll Disc Golf Park in Aldergrove, B.C., which is ranked as the 13th best disc golf course in the world by UDisc, and will be TWU's home course. Beyond TWU training out of Raptors Knoll, the teams will also be able to practice on-campus on TWU's recreational field, where disc golf baskets will be set up.

"The sport itself continues to emerge as a mainstream sport and a recreational activity," Hartmann said. "So, to see it enter into university campuses in this way is part of the natural progression of where the sport is going. It's growing in colleges in the United States and I think it's exciting to see TWU involved with this and to be part of the opportunity to bring the sport to campuses in Canada.
 
"We want to give athletes an opportunity to combine their pursuit of disc golf with their university experience. I had a chance to play and coach collegiate sports and I think playing varsity sports adds a lot to the collegiate experience. It's exciting to be part of the disc golf teams being established at TWU and to promote the sport itself as a recreational pursuit for all students on campus."
 
As the lone Canadian varsity side, so far, the Spartans will compete against U.S. universities and will look to annually qualify for the College Disc Golf Division I National Championship. The Spartans will compete in regional events in B.C., Washington and Oregon throughout the Fall and the Spring, leading to the national championship. 

"We're so excited to see what TWU is doing with disc golf," said John Baker, General Manager of the National Collegiate Disc Golf Championship. "Having athletic departments bring in the sport is going to take disc golf and college disc golf to the next level. To have this development and for us to be able to support the Spartans by inviting them to the national championship is incredible and we're so grateful that this is happening.
 
TWU plans to host two events during the season and will also be submitting a bid to host a College Disc Golf National Championship regional qualifying tournament for 2023. In 2021 and 2022, the College Disc Golf National Championship was held in Marion, North Carolina where 126 teams competed across four divisions with The University of Missouri capturing the Open Division I and Women's titles. 
 
"We love providing leadership opportunities for students and for the athletes to really grow and participate in competition," Baker said. "We see a lot of our players develop personally and professionally through disc golf and by expanding north of the border, we have a chance to really spread our message and our mission. Having Canada involved also adds another level of legitimacy to what we're trying to do here for our championships."
 
Beyond just the varsity teams, Hartmann is also planning to develop a club disc golf program at TWU.
 
"We also see the recreational value of the sport for all students on campus," said Gamache. "Disc golf is an outdoor, low cost, enjoyable form of recreation that contributes to physical, mental and social health."
 
Along with building the Spartans program, Hartmann and the TWU Athletics department will also be working to promote disc golf programs with other post-secondary institutions in a long-term effort to help build university and college disc golf in Canada.    

RECRUIT INFORMATION
As a sport within the Athletics Department of the TWU, the Spartans are looking for athletes who have a strong desire to excel in their sport. It is expected that team members will practice a minimum of four days per week, which will include two days per week on course and a minimum of two days per week in the practice facility. Athletes can also expect to participate in at least one competition per month.
 
The Spartans disc golf team will offer small athletic scholarships that will vary according to the skill of the individual. All athletes will also have access to normal TWU financial aid for academic and in need scholarships. Disc golf athletes at TWU will have access to fitness training programs tailored to their sport and therapy consults from the Spartan Therapy staff.

For more information check out the website at www.gospartans.ca or contact Chris Hartmann (chartmanngolf@gmail.com) or Jeff Gamache (Jeff.gamache@twu.ca). 

About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes as an independent team in men's rugby. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 13 U SPORTS team championships and 31 Canada West team championships.

About Trinity Western University
Recognized for quality, TWU has received seven consecutive A+ rankings for Quality of Teaching and Learning, holds three Canada Research Chairs, and wins national championships in CIS sports. More importantly, lives are changed at TWU through its whole-person, Christ-centred approach to education. With a wide array of undergraduate, graduate, and adult degree-completion programs, TWU equips leaders of character and competence to make a positive impact in the lives of others.  

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