Last year, both Inuit and Dene Games Yukon Championships were cancelled due to a lack of participants. This year, not only were both championships held over the weekend, some hot prospects for the next Arctic Winter Games were seen in action.
“A lot of the athletes that were here today, there’s a good chance that they will be part of the team,” said Yukon Aboriginal Sport Circle executive director Greg Edgelow. “I would anticipate that most of them will be part of the team.”
At Saturday’s Inuit Championships, held at Yukon College, there was one division winner who didn’t surprise anyone. Whitehorse’s Anna Rivard, 15, was not only the junior female champ, she swept the division and won six gold medals.
“We have a very strong junior female and that’s Anna Rivard,” said Edgelow. “She dominated. In all the other divisions there was some close rivalries, but she dominated everything.”
Rivard, who is a Level 5 gymnast, could obviously lend some of her gymnastics skills to the games, but competing against friends and fellow gymnasts, all of whom were supportive of each other, gave her the biggest advantage, said Rivard.
“Having the athletes’ and friends’ support really helped a lot,” she said.
Surprisingly, it was the first time Rivard had competed in the Inuit games and only the second time trying them.
“At the 2006 Arctic Winter Games I was trying out for gymnastics and my sister and brother were trying out for this,” said Rivard. “I came to one of their practices and I tried it just for fun and (Team Yukon coach) Cody Wilkinson said I could make the team, but I already made another team.”
Rivard hopes to qualify for Team Yukon for the Arctic Winter Games taking place in March in Grande Prairie, Alberta. As a Level 5 gymnast, Rivard no longer qualifies to compete at the Arctic Games for gymnastics.
But given the chance she will help the younger gymnasts in Alberta while there competing in the Inuit games.
“It’ll be different when I’m at the Arctic (Games) because I don’t know how the other girls compete,” said Rivard.
On Sunday, at the Dene games championships held at Elijah Smith School in Whitehorse, Mike Evans from Haines Junction was the all-around winner for the open men’s division, taking first in the stick pull, finger pull and third in the snow snake.
“Last time around with Arctic Winter Games, in 2007 in Yellowknife, I was a coach, athlete and chaperon, so that’s when I first got involved,” said Evans.
“The finger pull is an interesting one because there’s a risk of injury because you’re pulling on people’s fingers pretty tightly, so it’s not everyone’s favourite event, but it takes a bit of bravado to get in there. That’s a fun one to watch and it’s fun to be outside for the snow snake.”
Arctic Winter Games tryouts for the Inuit and Dene games teams will take place in January.
Inuit games
Kneel Jump
Junior female
1st - Anna Rivard
2nd - Corey Baxter
3rd - Foreste Martin
Junior male
1st - Tyler Wynnyk
2nd - Jordan Howse
3rd - Dustin Wilkinson
Open male
1st - Myles Nakoyak
2nd - Devon Armstrong
Two-foot high kick
Junior female
1st - Anna Rivard
2nd - Corey Baxter
3rd - Kelcie Henney
Junior male
1st - Tyler Wynnyk
2nd - Jordan Howse
Open male
1st - Myles Nakoyak
Triple jump
Junior female
1st - Anna Rivard
2nd - Corey Baxter
3rd - Foreste Martin
Junior male
1st - Tyler Wynnyk
2nd - Dustin Wilkinson
Open male
1st - Myles Nakoyak
2nd - Devon Armstrong
Alaskan high kick
Junior female
1st - Anna Rivard
2nd - Corey Baxter
Junior male
1st - Tyler Wynnyk
2nd - Jordan Howes
Arm pull
Junior female
1st - Anna Rivard
2nd - Foreste Martin
3rd - Corey Baxter
Junior male
1st - Jordan Howse
2nd - Tyler Wynnyk
3rd - Dustin Wilkinson
Head pull
Open male
1st - Devon Armsrong
2nd - Myles Nakoyak
One foot high kick
Junior female
1st - Anna Rivard
2nd - Corey Baxter
3rd - Foreste Martin
Junior male
1st - Tyler Wynnyk
2nd - Jordan Howse
Open male
1st - Myles Nakoyak
Knuckle hop
Open male
1st - Devon Armstrong
2nd - Myles Nakoyak
All around athlete
Junior female
1st - Anna Rivard
2nd - Corey Baxter
3rd - Foreste martin
Junior male
1st - Tyler Wynnyk
2nd - Jordan Howse
3rd - Dustin Wilkinson
Open male
1st - Myles Nakoyak
2nd - Devon Armstrong
Dene games
Stick pull
Juvenile female
1st - Jasmine Bill
2nd - Talisha Germaine
3rd - Teah Dickson
Open female
1st - Kecia Kassi
2nd -Gail Anderson
3rd - Elisha Sembsmoen
Open male
1st - Mike Evans
2nd - Doronn Fox
3rd - Donald Tutin
Finger pull
Juvenile female
1st - Teah Dickson
2nd - Dallyce Smith
3rd - Jasmine Bill
Open female
1st - Shaylea Sembsmoen
2nd - Miranda Charlie
3rd - Gail Anderson
Open male
1st - Mike Evans
2nd - Donald Tutin
3rd - John Acklack
Snow snake
Juvenile female
1st - Dallyce Smith
2nd - Shelby Smarch
3rd - Trisha Boutilier
Open female
1st - Elisha Sembsmoen
2nd - Gail Anderson
3rd - Starr Drynock
Open male
1st - Doronn Fox
2nd - John Acklack
3rd - Mike Evans
Best all around
Juvenile female
1st - Dallyce Smith
2nd - Teah Dickson
3rd - Shelby Smarch
Open female
1st - Gail Gail Anderson
2nd - Elisha Sembsmoen
3rd - Starr Drynock
Open male
1st - Mike Evans
2nd - Dorron Fox
3rd - John Acklack
Contact Tom Patrick at tomp@yukon-news.co