Memorial University of Newfoundland student-athlete Emily Foley took to social media on April 10, 2026, expressing disappointment with the Athletics Department after competing for Memorial for five years.
Foley claims that Memorial’s track and field team is “completely unfunded” by the university and that, to make it to Atlantic University Sport (AUS) this year, she had to purchase three airline tickets.
She said that while waiting for her second flight, she watched both the male and female basketball teams board and take off, but her flight was cancelled ten minutes later. She said it was 9:30 PM, and she was set to compete at 12:15 PM the next day. Foley said her grievances do not come from the basketball teams and that she was glad they made it, but said that what “was so disheartening was that, had roles been reversed, I knew that the MUN Athletics Department would have stopped at nothing to get them there.”
Foley said she sat alone at the airport, “completely heartbroken,” because she knew she was never going to make it in time. “The harsh reality was that my school was completely indifferent as to whether or not I made it,” she said.
She said she spent the rest of that night trying to get a flight that left within the next ten hours and managed to get herself on one that was scheduled to land 20 minutes before she competed. Foley said, “I knew that my money was likely going to be wasted, but I refused to give up on my last season.”
Foley said her coach advocated for her and was able to push the meet back by one hour to allow her more time to arrive, but “if it weren’t for her, I never would have made it in time.”
She said she arrived at the track 30 minutes before her first event. Foley said that in the weeks leading up to AUS, her goal was to get on the podium. She said that on competition day, her only goal was to get there. Foley said, “Before starting my six-hour event, I had already been awake for more than 30 hours; because of this, my expectations were low, and I was very thankful just to be there.”
Foley said, “The cost of AUS this year exceeded the cost of my tuition and depleted nearly half my savings. I also qualified for the USport Championships along with two other teammates; however, none of us were able to go due to the financial burden.”
Foley said that over the last five years, she spent $10,000 representing MUN at competitions. She said, “Everything I needed to succeed as an athlete came right out of my own pocket. After this experience, the only regret I have is wearing my gold medal with Sea-Hawks attire.”
She said she felt that it was important to speak up: “I believe the university should not receive credit for my achievement, as they did not offer any support or produce me as an athlete.”
View Foley’s post below:
Matt Barter is a graduate of the Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty at Memorial University of Newfoundland, holding a degree in Political Science with a minor in Sociology. He enjoys reading thought-provoking articles, taking walks in nature, and volunteering in the community.
Leave a Reply