Treaty 6 Traditional Games Festival, 2025
A Day to Celebrate Indigenous Sports
by Sarah Johnson
Community Program Leader + Festival Planning Committee
On June 5th, 2025, the second annual Treaty 6 Athletics Traditional Games Festival took place at maskêkosak kiskinomâtowikamik in Enoch Cree Nation. The event is a unique opportunity for students to participate in competitive versions of some traditional Indigenous games like the ones played in Spirit North programs and in their land-based learning classes. This year we welcomed Alexis Education and Kipohtakaw School (Alexander First Nation), and 97 students from grades 4-9 came together for the opportunity to meet and compete against athletes from other schools.
The morning was spent competing in four traditional games that have been played in different communities across Turtle Island:
Inuit stick pull (seal pull)
Inuit back push
one-foot high kick
back tag.
In the afternoon, 11 teams were formed for a Double Ball tournament that brought out the competitive spirit in both the students and teachers.
Jake Finney, Community Program Leader and one of the festival organizers, says that his favourite part of the day was refereeing the Double Ball Championship game and watching the winning team celebrate with their new trophy.
“They played a hard game and were excited to win a trophy. The team treated it like a Stanley Cup celebration, lifting the trophy up and down, involving their entire team and making sure their coach was included too.”
The Treaty 6 Athletics committee is a teacher-led, multi-school initiative that focuses on providing Indigenous schools surrounding amiskwacîwâskahikan (Edmonton) with an opportunity to come together for multi-school athletic competitions. The schools are located in different districts for school sports, which limits opportunities for the youth to meet and compete in school athletic events.
In 2024, one of the Treaty 6 Athletics coordinators asked for Spirit North’s assistance to facilitate a multi-school event that would specifically highlight and celebrate traditional Indigenous games. After a successful inaugural festival that year, the Northern Alberta team made it a priority to offer the same opportunity for the 2025 school year. We hope for the festival to continue as an annual event.
Thanks for another great festival!
The Treaty 6 Festival Planning Committee would like to extend their gratitude to maskêkosak kiskinomâtowikamik and Enoch Cree Nation for hosting this year's festival.
We are grateful to the elders who came and participated in the opening remarks, the community members who came to spectate, and the staff at maskêkosak kiskinomâtowikamik for their hard work and dedication to helping the festival run smoothly.
Special thanks to Lyndon Suntjens for bringing the traditional games knowledge and experience to the Northern Alberta Spirit North team, and for all his hard work creating a memorable experience for the youth.
Thank you to the volunteers from TransAlta for helping with the athletic events and the Athabasca Watershed Council for providing a hydration station for the athletes.
Thank-you to Gary, Matana and Adam for joining in for the day's festivities, and Mike and Lexie for making the drive from Southern Alberta to come and lend a hand.
Lastly, thank you to the Northern Alberta team: Chad, Shae, Dakota, Taz, and Dorian for being great leaders, keeping the kids excited, and helping the day run smoothly.
