Series consists of material related to the Wesmen Classic basketball tournament held by the University of Winnipeg annually in December. The tournament began in 1967 to commemorate Canada’s centennial anniversary and the recently instituted University of Winnipeg, as well as to develop the basketball scene in Manitoba. It was called the Golden Boy Classic until 1977, when the name was changed to the Wesmen Classic. Although the nomenclature has sometimes included corporate sponsorship (Labatt’s 1988-1993, MTS 1994-2007), the name Wesmen Classic persists to the present day.

The tournament started with four University men’s teams and eight high school boys’ teams. In 1970, it was expanded to eight University teams, drawn from applicants across Canada; 1972 saw the addition of a high school girls’ section. In 1980, a University women’s division was added which in 1981 became a separate event held in January; it was discontinued after 1996. A further Junior High section was included in 1986, and Freshmen in 1989. The Junior High section was replaced in 2000 by a Community Classic, comprised of school and community youth teams. In 2017, during the University’s (and the Classic’s) 50th anniversary celebrations, it was announced that the tournament would alternate between men’s and women’s volleyball as well as women’s basketball in annual rotation.

The expansion of the tournament in 1970 included the Winnipeg Arena as a venue for the championship games. While the tournament returned solely to Riddell Hall for 1974, in 1975 it was held at the Winnipeg Convention Centre. It remained in that venue until the University opened its Athletic Centre in 1984 (renamed the Duckworth Centre in 1993), which was still its home in 2017.

The material primarily includes programs, posters, and media guides for the tournaments generated by the University, including the years 1970 and 1972-2012. Some years include communications and notes related to planning the tournament for that year, or statistics and results from the tournament compiled after its completion. The material is arranged chronologically by the year of the tournament.

Series consists of material related to the annual activities of the Wesmen and the University of Winnipeg’s Athletics department. Most of the series is made up of records generated by the University for its athletic season in basketball and volleyball, corresponding with the academic year – media releases, souvenir programs, and season schedules; as well as its annual Athletic Awards. It includes similar records from the tournaments in which the Wesmen teams played: both hosted by the University of Winnipeg, such as the Midway Chrysler Invitational, and by other institutions around Canada, such as the Naismith Classic at Waterloo University or the Pinky Lewis Invitational at McMaster University. Furthermore, it includes media and statistics from the athletic leagues of which the Wesmen were a part: particularly the Canada West Universities Athletic Association (previously Great Plains Athletic Conference) and USports (previously Canadian Interuniversity Sport, and Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union). The series also contains a smaller amount of material related to awards received by the Wesmen or its staff, particularly long-time coach and Athletics Director Bill Wedlake: including the Manitoba Basketball Hall of Fame and Sports Hall of Fame. Series is arranged chronologically, with most of the records arranged by the academic year (and corresponding athletic season) during which they were generated.

Series consists of posters produced by the University of Winnipeg to promote the seasonal games of Wesmen teams in a given academic year or tournaments hosted by the University, including the Wesmen Classic, the New York Life Invitational, and the Midway Chrysler Invitational. Primarily the posters are related to men’s basketball, but include also women’s basketball and men’s and women’s volleyball. The seasonal posters include a photograph of the team and staff and a schedule of the season’s games. The majority of the posters are mounted on a foam core backing and remain in plastic wrapping from the printer/framer. They are arranged chronologically.

Series consists of several memorabilia, souvenirs, and objects related to United College and University of Winnipeg athletics.

Series consists of records from the University of Winnipeg Athletics Department and Canadian Interuniversity Sport related to the CIS Women’s National Basketball Championship tournaments in 2004 and 2005, when the tournament was hosted by the University of Winnipeg. The records are primarily generated by the Athletic Department’s planning the logistics, travel, lodging, sponsorship, and funding for the tournaments. The records also include programs and other ephemera from the tournament and the banquets for participants.

Series consists of photographs of Wesmen individual athletes, coaches, teams, and games, as well as University of Winnipeg Athletics Department staff, facilities, and events. The photographs primarily portray Wesmen men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball. The photographs show the seasonal teams in those sports from many of the academic years the Wesmen has been in existence between 1967 and 2007, as well as portraits of individual athletes from those teams. The games portrayed are mostly a part of the Wesmen Classic; but also other tournaments, such as the Mizuno volleyball tournament; as well as the seasonal games in which the Wesmen participated through the sports governing bodies of which the University of Winnipeg was a part, notably U Sports (previously Canadian Interuniversity Sport and Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union) and the Great Plains Athletic Conference. The series also contains a significant number of reproduced historical photographs, primarily from the University of Winnipeg Archives Special Collections, portraying the athletic teams and activities of Manitoba, Wesley, and United Colleges, as well as the University of Winnipeg, from 1900-1977.

Series consists of video recordings of Wesmen games and practices, including men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball; and interviews with Wesmen staff, such as head coach Bill Wedlake. The recordings were made by the University of Winnipeg itself, or by sports/newscasters.

This fonds consists of records related to the University of Winnipeg’s sports teams in men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball, the Wesmen; as well as the University of Winnipeg’s Athletic Department, facilities, and staff. Many of the records were generated by the University of Winnipeg, documenting its seasonal teams and games or invitational tournaments – photographs, programs, posters, booklets, brochures, media reports, correspondence, and video recordings. Other similar records were generated by the sports governing bodies, such as U Sports (previously Canadian Interuniversity Sport Association or Canadian Interuniversity Sport). The Athletic Department also collected newspaper or magazine articles related to the Wesmen or the University of Winnipeg from a variety of publications. The records are divided into eight series. The first is comprised of those newspaper clippings. The second relates to the Wesmen Classic, the iconic annual invitational tournament held in Winnipeg with teams from across Canada. The third relates to the annual activities of the Wesmen and the Athletic Department: primarily the seasonal teams and games through sports governing bodies, but including other invitational tournaments and the Athletic Department’s staff and facilities. The fourth series relates to the planning and execution of the Canadian Interuniversity Sport basketball championships, which were hosted by the University of Winnipeg in 2004 and 2005. The fifth series is comprised of a variety of photographs. The sixth series is comprised of posters produced by the University for its annual Wesmen teams and tournaments. The seventh series contains several video recordings of Wesmen games or interviews with Wesmen players and staff. Finally, the eighth series contains several miscellaneous objects related to the Wesmen or the University’s athletic history.