For the sixth consecutive year, The Varsity has selected its men’s and women’s athletes of the year. The two athletes chosen contributed significantly to their respective teams’ success while simultaneously breaking new ground in their individual achievements.
Men’s Athlete of the Year: Aiden Grout
As captain of the track and field team, Aiden Grout reached new heights in his fifth and final season as a Blue. The Master of Science in Sustainability Management student capped off his tenure with the Varsity Blues with a fourth Ontario University Athletics (OUA) gold medal in high jump, which he secured with a leap of 2.17 metres, and a third U SPORTS Championship title after clearing 2.18 metres. His 2.23-metre high jump clearance, which he achieved at the Charlie Thomas Invitational at Texas A&M, ties him for the third-highest jump in U of T and U SPORTS history.
Moreover, this season marks an expansion of his skill set, as Grout also placed seventh in hurdles at the OUA Championships. He achieved the U SPORTS autoqualification standard in the heptathlon, where he earned 5,567 points, the second most in U of T program history. These achievements exemplify his versatility as an athlete, contributing to the track program’s collective success by gaining additional points for the team.
Grout’s performance this season earned him a sweep of the OUA Field Athlete of the Year and U SPORTS Field Athlete of the Year. These titles add to his long list of impressive accolades, including the U SPORTS Top Scholar Athlete award in the 2023–2024 season and the OUA Track and Field Rookie of the Year award in 2022. He also represented Canada last season at the 2025 International University Sports Federation (FISU) World University Games, where he placed ninth in high jump internationally.
The Blues’ track and field teams had a solid season, with the men placing fifth and the women placing fourth at OUAs, followed by eighth-place finishes from both teams at U SPORTS. Grout’s veteran presence undoubtedly had a large impact in fostering the program’s culture of success, especially for the rookie-laden squad. His name will be etched into U of T track and field’s history books as a result of his academic and athletic achievements.
Women’s Athlete of the Year: Hannah Chown
Blues soccer captain Hannah Chown capped off an incredible Varsity Blue career with her strongest team and individual season yet. Chown, a veteran defender, led the team to the program’s first–ever OUA gold this fall during her fifth season with the Blues. The 2025 season also marked her fourth year as a captain, a role she assumed in just her second year on the team. The Master of Teaching student at U of T’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) played an instrumental role in the Blues’ regular-season success, with the team allowing only 10 goals in 12 games, securing the top seed in the OUA Women’s Soccer Championship.
The team’s ensuing provincial playoff run culminated in a historic finish, as Chown scored the only goal in the final match against the Guelph Gryphons to win the long-elusive provincial title. While the Blues were unable to replicate the result at the national level at the U SPORTS Championship the following week, the women’s soccer team has an undeniably bright future ahead, thanks to the precedent Chown has set.
Chown’s list of accomplishments and awards this season includes OUA East MVP, the OUA East Community Service Award, and U SPORTS First Team All-Canadian honours. She has also achieved five consecutive OUA all-star designations. Despite being deployed primarily in defence, Chown leaves the Blues with a remarkable 20 goals and six assists in 62 games.
Moreover, Chown has an extensive list of extracurricular and community service accomplishments. Notably, she has served as president of the Varsity Blues Varsity Board, a student lead with the Varsity Blues Student-Athlete Services, co-chair of the Council of Athletics and Recreation, and a member of the OUA’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Her presence will be missed on the pitch, as well as in the wider U of T student-athlete community.
Honourable mentions
While Grout and Chown had two exemplary seasons, several other Varsity Blues athletes had strong performances. Honourable mentions for men’s Athlete of the Year include Andrew Herman in swimming, Maxime Gratton in volleyball, and Simeon Jeffers in basketball.
Fourth-year swimmer Herman picked up significant hardware at U SPORTS this year, earning two gold medals and breaking two U SPORTS records in the 100-metre backstroke and 50-metre backstroke in the process. He earned an additional two silver medals in the 4 x 100 medley and 4 x 100 free, taking home U SPORTS Swimmer of the Year honours. His contributions played a significant role in the men’s swim team’s second-place national finish at U SPORTS.
Gratton, a master’s student at OISE, earned the title of 2026 OUA Player of the Year in men’s volleyball, leading the OUA in total points and points per set, with 340 and 4.5, respectively. His 340 total points put him fourth on the U of T all-time points list, and earned him U SPORTS First Team All-Canadian honours.
Finally, basketball forward Jeffers earned OUA all-star third-team honours, averaging 15.8 points per game. The third-year student played a significant role in the team’s underdog run this season in the OUA playoffs, where the 11th-seeded Blues upset the sixth-seeded and 10th nationally ranked Queen’s 99–96 in their quarterfinal game. There, Jeffers recorded a team-high 22 points. While the Blues ultimately fell to the Carleton Ravens in the semifinal round, their run was indicative of the program’s growth in recent years, having made it to the OUA semifinals twice in the past four years for the first time since the 1996–1997 season.
For women’s Athlete of the Year, honourable mentions include Marina Gustke in volleyball, Gabriella Guo in figure skating, Nina Mollin in swimming, and Julia Agostinelli in cross country and track and field.
Gustke, a setter, earned OUA Rookie of the Year in addition to U SPORTS all-rookie honours for her instrumental role on the women’s volleyball team. The Montreal native had 576 total assists, in addition to 135 digs and 10 blocks in 69 sets played.
Guo, a fourth-year Blues veteran, played an instrumental role in the Blues’ OUA team gold in figure skating. In addition to taking the award for the Novice Women Short Program, she won Freeskate Fours alongside teammates Victoria Bocknek, Hugo Li, and Cole Van Der Velden, as well as the Senior Pair Freeskate with partner Li. The Blues managed a collective 106 points, edging out Western’s 104 by a tight margin.
Fourth-year swimmer Mollin continued her streak of OUA and U SPORTS success. She was named OUA Swimmer of the Year, winning three individual provincial gold medals in the 200-metre butterfly, 200-metre individual medley, and 100-metre butterfly, in addition to a gold in the 4 x 100 relay. At U SPORTS, she picked up an additional two golds and a bronze, and helped her 4 x 100 medley relay team to a bronze finish.
Finally, dual athlete Agostinelli claimed a lengthy list of awards as a member of both the cross country and track and field teams. In the fall, she claimed an individual silver medal at the OUA Cross Country Championships and a fourth-place finish at nationals, leading to a team sixth-place finish. More recently, during the track season, she claimed two OUA gold medals in the 1500-metre and 1000-metre, as well as a silver in the 4 x 800 relay. At the U SPORTS Championships, she claimed two national silvers, also in the 1500-metre and 1000-metre. Agostinelli also represented Canada at the 2025 FISU World University Games and the 2026 FISU Cross Country Championships, bringing her talents to the international level.
The Varsity congratulates these remarkable athletes on their accomplishments and looks forward to all that the Varsity Blues achieve next season!
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