By KLAS STOLPE
Sentinel Staff Writer
Nearly a hundred athletes from Alaska and Canada are expected to compete in the 2019 Traditional Games in Juneau this week, marking the first time Southeast Alaska has hosted a statewide indigenous sports event.
The 2019 Traditional Games are scheduled on Saturday and Sunday, March 16-17, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Thunder Mountain High School, and the competition is open to everyone, Native and non-Native, ages 11 and older. Spectators are invited and appreciated. The event will include an art market.
According to a press release from sponsor Sealaska Heritage Institue, athletes from Hoonah, Ketchikan, Metlakatla, Yakutat, Bethel, Utqiagvik, Whitehorse and Northern Arizona University also will compete in Juneau. This is the first time Juneau has invited teams from outside the city to take part in the traditional games.
The athletes coming from outside will compete in the games but hold their qualifying events at another time.
Mt. Edgecumbe High School student Haley Osborne carries Cameron Ramirez in a Native Youth Olympics practice in the school’s B.J. McGillis Gymnasium in 2018. (Sentinel file Photo by James Poulson)
Juneau athletes will be vying to qualify for Team Juneau to compete in the statewide Native Youth Olympics Games Alaska (NYO), scheduled April 25-27 in Anchorage.
The games are based on ancient hunting and survival skills that allowed Indigenous peoples to survive and thrive in the harsh conditions of Alaska and across the Arctic.
Mt. Edgecumbe NYO coach Archie Young said they are beginning practices on Thursday and will not be participating in Juneau but are preparing for the Anchorage games.
“Native Youth Olympics is awesome,” Young said. “Sportsmanship is first and foremost. You have athletes striving to do their best and then turning right around and offering advice and support to their competitors. I have seen nothing like it in athletics.”
Athletes in Juneau will compete in the 10 events of the NYO games. On Saturday, March 16, the Scissor Broad Jump, Kneel Jump, Wrist Carry, One Foot High Kick, and Dene Stick Pull will be held. On Sunday, March 17, the Inuit Stick Pull, Two-Foot High Kick, One-Hand Reach, Alaska High Kick, and the Seal Hop will be held.
The opening ceremony will feature music by DJ Celeste Worl and a blanket toss, a rarity in Southeast Alaska. Tlingit rapper Arias Hoyle will perform on Saturday morning and debut a new music video at the Native Youth Olympics Celebration, scheduled the evening of March 16 at the Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall. The dance group Woosh.ji.een will perform Sunday morning.
In addition, students from all three of Juneau’s high schools and both middle schools will participate.
In the past two years, more than 2,000 students have received instruction through the NYO program, which offers practices every week during the school year in multiple locations.
Sealaska Heritage Institute and other sponsors first helped to organize a team in Juneau in 2017, and in 2018 the city was represented at the NYO Games Alaska for the first time in almost 30 years.
Since then, the number of Juneau students participating in the olympics has nearly doubled. An estimated 100 athletes are expected to compete in Juneau’s traditional games — 60 from Juneau and 40 from outside the city, compared to 54 athletes last year.
“The Juneau program was successful last year partly because we foster an atmosphere of support and acceptance,” Juneau coach Kyle Worl said. “Historically, people had to work together and support each other, and that spirit is very much a part of the games and something I try to instill in the athletes.”
Worl said athlete evaluations last year showed students’ cited the supportive community as one of the main reasons they participated.
Sitka’s Kale Perkins will attend the Juneau games and complete his coaching certification under Worl.
“I am new to this and hope to get a better understanding of what’s expected on the coaching side of things,” Perkins said. “I am not sure what Kyle Worl has in store but I am excited with working with him and getting the process going. When I get back, Hillary Nutting and I will be working on how we can get the word out and open it up for registration on the Sitka side. We’re just getting our feet wet and testing the waters, but it basically comes down to wanting to be able to give kids another option for growth. In the meantime, those interested can reach Sitka Tribe of Alaska at 966-1357 and ask about the program and registration.”
High school and middle school athletes from more than 100 communities will take part in the Anchorage games. They will compete in the 10 events for first- through fifth-place medals, in male and female divisions. The Native Youth Olympics are produced by Cook Inlet Tribal Council.
Athletes, age 11 and up, can register for the Juneau games from 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. each day of the event. Medals will be awarded in three divisions: Middle School, High School, and Open (Adults 18 and over).
For more information contact Juneau coach Kyle Worl at 907-227-4998 or kyle.worl@juneauschools.org.
