Tk’emlúps te Secwe̓pemc, Kamloops bidding to host 2027 North American Indigenous Games

Tk’emlúps te Secwe̓pemc and the City of Kamloops will represent British Columbia with a bid to host the North American Indigenous Games in 2027.

The games will be hosted in a Western Canada province or territory, and the pair won a provincial competition to become B.C.’s top and only contender.

“The leadership and those partnerships that we share is a testament to reconcili-action,” Kúkpi7 Rosanne Casimir said Friday.

“This event would be the largest hosted in the history in this area, welcoming up to 6,000 participants across from Turtle Island, across Canada, coast to coast, and to the territories and the United States.”

The North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) were inspired, in part, by native summer and winter games held in Alberta in the early 1970s. The dream to host international games for Indigenous Peoples grew and in 1977, Willie Littlechild of the Ermineskin First Nation presented a motion to host such a tournament at the Annual Assembly of the World Council of Indigenous Peoples in Sweden.

The first NAIG were held in 1990 in Edmonton.

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“These games are unlike any other international multisport games. They’re about reducing barriers for Indigenous youth, families and communities,” said Rick Brant teho:ka, CEO of the Indigenous Sport, Physical Activity and Recreation Council.

“It is a collective expression of our pride and our shared histories and identities. It’s also about building relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities and advancing our shared commitment to reconciliation.”

The NAIG have not taken place since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Halifax will host the next tournament between July 15 and 23, 2023, with competitions in 16 sports spread across 21 venues in the Kjipuktuk (Halifax), Dartmouth and Millbrook First Nation.

City of Kamloops Coun. Mike O’Reilly said his municipality has invested more than $60 million in community infrastructure so it can host events of that size. Kamloops has long been known as the ‘Tournament Capital of Canada.’

“Most important is the opportunity to expand our long-lasting relationship with Tk’emlúps and other surrounding Indigenous nations in the communities we are near, and lastly, bringing our communities together in sport and culture celebration and reconciliation,” he said.

The successful bid to host the 2027 NAIG will be revealed on July 22, 2023.