Tom Kieswetter

Tom Kieswetter was born in Kitchener and is a lifelong resident of Waterloo Region. He started playing basketball at St. Jerome’s High School, where he was a Twin-City champion, All-Star, and Athlete of the Year. Kieswetter went on to play at the University of Waterloo from 1968 to 1973, becoming a two-time Ontario University Athletics (OUA) All-Star.
In 1972, he was a member of the Canadian National Basketball Team and competed in the pre-Olympic tournament in Germany.

Kieswetter became a coach at St. Jerome’s, where his teams won three Regional Championships and a Provincial Championship in 1987. He also co-founded and was player/coach of the K-W Titans Senior Men’s Basketball Team.

In 1992, he became Head Coach of the University of Waterloo Warriors, leading them to 325 wins and two trips to the National Championships. Kieswetter focussed on the education of his players and, at Waterloo, had an exceptional number of Academic All-Canadians and a graduation rate exceeding 99%.

Kieswetter also gave back to the community by helping to create the Community Basketball Camp with Kitchener Parks and Recreation (1977), the Ultimate Warrior Basketball Camp at the University of Waterloo (1993), and the K-W Chapter of KidSport (2013). Throughout the decades, these organizations have provided thousands of youth in the region the opportunity to participate in sports.