London, ON – A pair of Mustangs will be inducted into the London Sports Hall of Fame this fall as announced this week.
Mustangs Cheerleading Coach David-Lee "Trace" Tracey & Men's Hockey alumni Steve Rucchin are among the 4 who are being recognized.
"Very flattered, surprised, thankful and appreciative for the recognition." said Tracey "The selection committee members were incredibly kind and welcoming and I was absolutely amazed at how many of them actually know about the Western Cheer teams (over the past 4 decades) and all seemed to have one unique story or another about the team. It was really genuine and kind."
Tracey came to Western as an undergrad student in 1977 and has developed the Cheer program into an annual powerhouse on the university level, winning over 30 National Co-Ed Cheerleading Championships since the organization's inception in 1985.
" I certainly would not have had the career nor the success without the awesome athleticism of a whole lot of great Western students over the past 42 years." said Tracey "I hope THEY all can celebrate the recognition and be equally proud of the role they have played in both building Western as a significant cheerleading program, as well as the part they played in the wider development of younger cheerleading athletes through mentorship, coaching and leadership."
Rucchin played for the Mustangs Men's Hockey Team from 1990-94 before being drafted 2nd overall in the 1994 NHL Supplemental Draft by the Anaheim Ducks and went on to a 13-year NHL career.
"Steve Rucchin was one of the best players ever to wear the purple and white and certainly the most successful National Hockey league player from the program. I have had an opportunity to get to know Steve very well in my tenure as coach and he is incredibly humble despite his many incredible accomplishments as an professional athlete." said Mustangs Men's Hockey Head Coach Clarke Singer "Steve has always been a very generous supporter of Mustangs Hockey over the years, never forgetting his roots here in London and is very deserving of this tremendous honour. I remember showing our team a couple of years ago that both Paul Kariya and Temmu Selanne mentioned Steve in their Hall of Fame acceptance speeches, another indication of the impact he had in the National Hockey League."
Rucchin was a three-time OUAA First Team All-Star and won the Bill L'Heureux Trophy as OUAA Most Outstanding Player in 1993-94.
Rucchin & Tracey will join track and field athlete Jessica Zelinka and longtime suppporter of multiple sports organizations in the city, Jim Agathos in the class of 2022. All four will be inducted at a ceremony that will be held in the fall at the Carousel Room at Western Fair District.
