Last weekend, spectators inside Skyview Middle School's gymnasium cheered on youth athletes as they strived to kick, hop and pull their way to new records. The three-day event, organized by the Kenaitze Indian Tribe and Salamatof Tribe, showcased more than half a dozen competitive games as part of Soldotna's Native Youth Olympics.
“These games were played to develop skills for everyday living before we had all of today’s modern amenities,” said Nicole Johnson, Alaska’s Native Youth Olympics head official. She says the games spotlight traditional Alaska Native contests needed to stay in shape for hunting and fishing.
“You had to adapt, you didn’t have a choice,” Johnson said.
One of the weekend’s competitive games was the Inuit stick pull. That’s where players attempt to pull a stick away from one another without losing their grip. There’s also the scissor jump, which looks similar to hopscotch.
“It keeps the kids busy,” said Bernadine Atchison, tribal council chairperson for the Kenaitze Indian Tribe. “It’s just learning how to make healthy choices. It’s teaching them how to work with their teammates.”
Before hitting the gymnasium floor for the last event of the weekend, Soldotna eighth-grader Braydon Mitchell silently plotted his game plan. He’s tired – having competed in just about every game.
But, Mitchell said he’s glad to have done so. He most enjoys the games’ sportsmanship and meeting new people.
“It’s not like other competitive sports where it’s just ‘that other team sucks, and you need to beat them,’" Mitchell said. "This is really just – everyone is together.”
His friend and fellow Native Youth Olympics teammate Boyuk Marsdn convinced him to compete in most of this year’s games. But for Marsdn, the game is more than just about sportsmanship.
“It teaches us about our culture that’s almost entirely gone extinct," Marsdn said. "It gives you a good heart, because then you realize that everyone else is cheering on for you, and then you have the confidence to cheer everyone else on.”
Athletes have competed in the Native Youth Olympics since the 1970s. Head official Nicole Johnson was once herself a competitor, setting a high-kick record that stood for 25 years.
Today, she’s coaching youth to break her record and their own personal records.
“It’s teaching them how to do the games and watching that spark in their eye when they’ve got it," Johnson said. "When they hit it, when they succeed past their personal limit that they have set.”
The three-day event saw about 200 Native and non-Native participants from Soldotna to Chickaloon. Although geared toward youth, some adults and coaches competed in the games, too.
For upcoming Native Youth Olympics events, visit their website.
