University of Winnipeg Wesmen women’s basketball head coach Tanya McKay is stepping down. (DAVID LARKINS / WESMEN ATHLETICS)
WINNIPEG — Tanya McKay is stepping down after 26 years of leading the University of Winnipeg Wesmen women’s basketball team.
The head coach has accepted a position at Dalhousie University in Halifax, where she will continue to lead a group of young women on the Tigers’ court.
“My decision is a personal one: It’s time to go home and be there for my parents.
I am grateful for my time in Winnipeg and the University of Winnipeg, which has been my second home for 36 years,” McKay said in a statement.
McKay, a native of Sackville, N.S., has spent the past 30 years with Winnipeg Wesmen Athletics.
“A player, a wife, a mom, and coach, I have grown up a lot since arriving in Winnipeg in 1986, and I’m thankful to former athletic director Aubrey Ferris, who took a chance on me and gave me my dream job in 1996.
During her time with the Wesmen, McKay coached more than 100 student-athletes and made five national championship appearances, claiming three silver medals and two bronze.
“Our current student-athletes are tremendous ambassadors for our university and I will truly miss coming to work every day to be a part of your journey. I leave here knowing the program will be in good hands but also knowing how difficult it will be to say goodbye.”
McKay leaves behind a legacy of being the winningest and longest-tenured head coach in the program’s history.
Outside of the Wesmen, she also twice served as an assistant coach in national programs: 1999 at the World University Games, and 2000 with the junior national team at the Francophone Games.
The Wesmen will soon commence a national search to find McKay’s replacement for the 2022-23 season.
