A selection of three Varsity Blues athletes and three worthy builders will become the newest members of the University of Toronto Sports Hall of Fame, set to be celebrated on Wednesday, May 28.

The event will be held at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport on the University of Toronto's St. George campus. Tickets are available here. The reception is scheduled to start at 6 p.m., with the ceremony to follow at 7 p.m., all inside the Kimel Family Field House.

In the athlete category, the trio of high jump legend Jeff Caton, dual-sport standout Edith Chow, and rowing world champion Michelle Darvill have been selected for induction with the 2025 U of T Sports Hall of Fame class.

Three builders will also join the Hall. Women in sport pioneer Clara Benson, 1993 Vanier Cup champion coach Bob Laycoe and long-time philanthropist and basketball alumnus Ron Kimel will also be honoured on May 28.

2025 U of T Sports Hall of Fame Inductees:

A member of the Varsity Blues track and field team from 1994 to 1999, Jeff Caton established himself as one of the premiere high jumpers in the country while donning the Blue and White. In every year of his athletic career Caton won an OUAA medal in the high jump, including gold in both 1998 and 1999. This impressive run garnered him OUAA all-star honours in five consecutive seasons. His Varsity Blues career was highlighted by a 1998-99 season, which saw him go undefeated against Canadian competition, winning CIAU gold and earning all-Canadian recognition. Caton received the Gordon Cressy Award and Kirkwood Award in 1998 and the prestigious Silver T in 1999. Beyond collegiate competition, he earned national silver at both the 1998 Ontario Championships and 1998 Canadian National Championships. He would rank fourth in the country in high jump in 1999 and go on to compete at the 2001 FISU Games.

An exceptional racquet sport athlete, Varsity Blues badminton and squash will see Edith Chow inducted following her outstanding collegiate career. Team captain with the Varsity Blues badminton team from 2000 to 2003, Chow helped U of T win the provincial championships during the 2002-03 season. The No. 1 player earned OUA all-star honours in four consecutive seasons, was named the OUA Rookie of the Year, and was honoured as the OUA MVP in three straight years. With the Varsity Blues squash team, she helped U of T earn provincial medals in four straight seasons, garnering OUA all-star honours again in 2008-09 as she worked to complete her PhD studies at the University of Toronto.

Rounding out the athlete inductions, Varsity Blues rower Michelle Darvill becomes the fifth woman to be inducted as an individual from the U of T rowing program. Graduating with a Bachelor of Science in 1989, Darvill would go on to excel internationally as an athlete with both Team Canada and Team Germany. She became a world champion in three different lightweight boat classes, once for Canada and twice for Germany. She additionally won gold in the lightweight women's single sculls at the 1993 World Rowing Championships, a year after earning silver for Canada in the lightweight women's doubles at the 1992 event. Competing at the pinnacle of international events, she would represent Germany at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympic Games. Giving back to the sport that provided her with such incredible opportunities, Darvill has coached with the Canadian national team, leading the women's eight to gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. And most recently she is a current national team coach for the Netherlands, leading two Dutch crews to gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Completing her Bachelors and PhD at the University of Toronto, Dr. Clara Benson found multiple ways during her time as both a student and administrator to impact the U of T community. An inspirational leader, Dr. Benson served as president of the women's athletic association at the University of Toronto and helped shape University College athletics, highlighting the immense impact she had on the U of T athletics community. She would also serve as a chemistry professor from 1920 to 1945, being one of U of T's first two female professors hired. She has additionally seen the Benson building named in her honour and the Varsity Blues Clara Benson Honour Award, donated in 1962. The award is handed out annually to a graduating student-athlete who, like Dr. Benson, has contributed to university athletics through academics, leadership, and community service.

A Varsity Blues basketball alumnus himself, Ron Kimel, and the Kimel family have helped transform the very landscape of the University of Toronto athletics program. With a generous donation of $10 million in 2014, it was made possible to break ground on the state-of-the-art Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport. This included the incredible indoor basketball and volleyball facility known as the Kimel Family Field House, which is not only the home of the Varsity Blues basketball and volleyball teams, but both the greater U of T and Toronto community enjoy today.

A leader of young men, Bob Laycoe served as head coach of the Varsity Blues football program from 1988 to 2001. Across 14 seasons, he accumulated 54 total wins, including one of the most special moments in U of T athletics history, the 1993 Vanier Cup. Leading the Varsity Blues to a national championship, Laycoe delivered a record of 11-1 during the historic season, including a 24-16 Yates Cup victory versus the Western Mustangs, a 26-16 Churchill Bowl win over Concordia, and a thrilling 37-34 Vanier Cup win against the Calgary Dinos. He was additionally named OUAA coach of the year in 1992 was selected as a modern era coach for the U of T football programs all-century team.

The Sports Hall of Fame honours U of T's greatest athletes and builders. It was established by the T-Holders' Association in 1987 as part of an ongoing effort to preserve and display the records relating to the outstanding historical tradition of athletic, academic and community leadership fostered by the University of Toronto.

BUILDERS:

Clara Benson
BA 1899; PhD 1903
 
Ron Kimel
BA 1966; Diploma Business Admin 1967
 
Bob Laycoe
Football
 
ATHLETES:

Jeff Caton
BPHE 1998; BEd 2000
Track & Field
 
Edith Chow
HSBc 2003; PhD 2011
Badminton, Squash
 
Michelle Darvill
BSc 1989
Rowing