A Voice from the Eastern Door
A Voice from the Eastern Door
Competitors race in traditional snowshoes at the Arctic Winter Games in South Slave Region, Alaska. Sixteen of the Games' 33 sports are traditional, including Dene hand games and dogsledding. Photos by Harvey Arquette.
Arquette had the opportunity to meet with athletes from around the circumpolar region, including this young man from a Russian youth hockey team.
Arquette also met Team Alaska girl's hockey team.
Harvey Arquette at the World Arctic Games. While driving his big rig through frozen tundra and lakes far north, Arquette happened on the games by chance.
Teams of dogs used in the World Arctic Games, 2018.
Harvey Arquette was hauling 51 thousand liters of fuel to the farthest regions in North when he came upon the Arctic Winter Games. About the same time, athletes descended on North West Territory's South Slave region for the 2018 Arctic Winter Games.
Athletes from the circumpolar world arrive on the Northwest Territories communities of Hay River and Fort Smith, where a dream nearly 15 years in the making culminated with the opening of the 2018 Arctic Winter Games.
About 1,900 athletes from Canada's territories, Nunavut, northern Alberta, Alaska, Greenland, Russia and Scandinavia compete in the multi-sport competition including traditional sports. With the arrival of the Arctic Games small communities almost double in population - Hay River typically has about 3,500 residents, Fort Smith about 2,500.
The Arctic Winter Games play an important role in sport development in Canada's northern territories, particularly in the promotion of traditional sports, which have been a part of the Games since their founding. This year, 16 different Dene and Inuit sports will be contested. The inclusion of traditional sports is also unique in that they promote a sharing culture, something often not seen in competitive sports events. Arctic sports participants are encouraged to help each other, and it's not uncommon to see officials stop competitions to give tips to athletes.
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