By Troy Gillard

NEW ERA, NEW NAME

RDU sports teams to drop “Kings, Queens” for new name

Jan 8, 2020 | 2:54 PM

Say goodbye to the RDC Kings and Queens.

College officials say that when Red Deer College officially becomes Red Deer University its sports teams will play under a new name.

“As RDC undertakes the exciting process of rebranding to become Red Deer University, we began to look at the names of our Kings and Queens Athletic teams. While these names have served us well, this is the ideal time for us to evolve and adopt names that are not gender based,” says Dr. Peter Nunoda, RDC President.

“Red Deer University Athletics needs a new team name that is common for men’s teams, women’s teams and mixed teams. This forward-thinking approach will reflect the values of the institution and RDU Athletics.”

Community members and college members are invited to provide feedback regarding the name change at two focus group sessions that will be held on February 11.

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People who are interested are encouraged to register for a session soon as space is limited.

Those who are unable to attend one of the sessions can take part in an online survey at rdc.ab.ca/athleticsurvey from January 8 to February 14.

Once all of the feedback has been collected, then work will begin to determine the new brand and name that is a best fit for the future RDU Athletics. A common team name will be used beginning in the 2021/2022 season.

“While we’re looking to the future as RDU Athletics, the history of the RDC Kings and Queens will still be remembered and celebrated,” says Nunoda. “For 56 years our student-athletes, coaches and teams have been successful at all levels of competition, and they’ve also been recognized for their academic excellence, fundraising and volunteering. All of these qualities will carry into the new RDU Athletics brand, which will be an important part of Red Deer University moving forward.”

The Red Deer College Kings and Queens teams were established in 1964. Since then, RDC Athletic teams and individual student-athletes have won 25 National Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) titles, 171 Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) team and individual titles. This year, the College has more than 180 student-athletes competing in seven sports on 15 teams.