The 2023 Arctic Winter Games was a winter multi-sport event which took place in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo in Northern Alberta from 29 January to 4 February 2023. The games were originally scheduled to take place in March 2022, but was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Arctic Winter Games is the world's largest multisport and cultural event for young people of the Arctic. The Games is an international biennial celebration of circumpolar sports and culture held for a week, each time with a different nation or region as the host. AWG celebrates sports, social interaction and culture. The Games contributes to creating an awareness on cultural diversity, and develops athletes to participate in the competitions with the focus on fair play. The games bind the Arctic countries together and include traditional games such as Arctic sports and Dené games.

Organization

The 2023 games are set to take place in Wood Buffalo in Northern Alberta, Canada. Nicole Clow is the general manager of the games.

Marketing

The mascot of the 2023 games is a

lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, Ontar ...

named Nitotem. The name translates to "my friend" in the

Cree language Cree (also known as Cree– Montagnais–Naskapi) is a dialect continuum of Algonquian languages spoken by approximately 117,000 people across Canada, from the Northwest Territories to Alberta to Labrador. If considered one language, it is th ...

. The mascot was designed by Sadie Antoine from Fort McMurray, after she won a design contest.

Participants

Eight contingents are set to participate in the 2023 Arctic Winter Games. * Alaska, United States * Greenland * Northern Alberta, Canada (host) *

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...

, Canada *

Nunavik Nunavik (; ; iu, ᓄᓇᕕᒃ) comprises the northern third of the province of Quebec, part of the Nord-du-Québec region and nearly coterminous with Kativik. Covering a land area of north of the 55th parallel, it is the homeland of the I ...

, Quebec, Canada *

Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' ...

, Canada * Sami flag

Sámi people * Yukon, Canada Athletes from the Russian region of Yamalo-Nenets did not participate in the 2023 Arctic Winter Games due to the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

Venues

The 2023 are to be held at various sports venues, schools and facilities in Fort McMurray, Anzac and Fort McKay.

Sports venues

The following venues are set to host events during the 2023 Arctic Winter Games.

The Games

Sports

Twenty sports are scheduled to be held at the 2023 Arctic Winter Games.

Archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

will make its debut in the modern games, having appeared only once before in the

1974 Arctic Winter Games Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

Alpine skiing Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether for ...

will return to the games after not appearing in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

Dog mushing Mushing is a sport or transport method powered by dogs. It includes carting, pulka, dog scootering, sled dog racing, skijoring, freighting, and weight pulling. More specifically, it implies the use of one or more dogs to pull a sled, most commonly ...

has been removed from the program and will not appear. Four skiing sports are to be held, with alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing and snowboarding. Two snowshoe events are to be held, with snowshoe biathlon and snowshoeing. Two racquet sports are to be held, with badminton and table tennis. Two skating events are to be held, with figure skating and short track speed skating. Team sports to be held are basketball, futsal, ice hockey, volleyball and curling. Traditional Inuit sports are also held, with Arctic sports, Dene games, and wrestling, the latter also including events for traditional wrestling. Also scheduled are gymnastics and archery. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Medal tally

Culture

The Arctic Winter Games celebrates culture and creates in the participants an awareness of cultural similarities and dissimilarities. Cultural exchange and social interaction are important parts of the Games. Each participating contingent contributes with performances in dance, song, music, plays or art. These cultural events reflect the traditional as well as the modern cultures of the Arctic.

Hodgson Trophy

At each Arctic Winter Games, the AWG International Committee presents the Hodgson Trophy to the contingent whose athletes best exemplify the ideals of fair play and team spirit. Team members also receive a distinctive pin in recognition of their accomplishment.

Medallists

Archery

Arctic sports

;2005 ;Open

Badminton

Basketball

Curling

Dene games

;Boys ;Girls

Gymnastics

Ice hockey

Volleyball

Wrestling

;Individual ;Inuit wrestling ;Team

References

External links

2023 Arctic Winter Games Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arctic Winter Games 2023 Arctic Winter Games, 2023 2023 in Canadian sports

2023 Events Predicted and scheduled events * January 1 ** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1927 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law. ** Croatia will adopt the eu ...

Multi-sport events in Canada International sports competitions hosted by Canada Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo Arctic Winter Games Arctic Winter Games 2023 in sports in Alberta Arctic Winter Games