Dane Gibson
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Mar 08/00) - The yellows, blues, reds and greens of nine team colours melted together like the backdrop of an oil painting, Sunday, as 1,230 athletes celebrated the opening of the 16th Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse.

An audience of more than 3,500 cheered the young competitors as they proudly marched into the NorthwesTel Whitehorse Takhini Arena waving their respective national, regional, provincial and territorial flags.

Teams from the Northern circumpolar area; Alaska, Alberta North, Chukotka (North-east Siberia), Greenland, Magadan (Siberia), Nunavik-Quebec, Yukon, Nunavut, and the NWT are competing in over 100 events in 19 different sports during the week-long competition.

For the 253 NWT athletes, marching into the arena for the opening ceremonies will be a moment they'll remember for the rest of their lives.

"It was an unbelievable feeling as we entered the arena," said Yellowknife junior male volleyball player, Trent Snodgrass.

"The atmosphere was charged and it brought us up to another level of intensity. Being here with our whole team together made us realize we're all thinking the same thing -- this is fun, but we want to win."

Canada's Governor General Adrienne Clarkson was on hand to welcome the athletes as was the federal minister responsible for amateur sport, Denis Coderre.

NWT Premier Stephen Kakfwi stood and waved to the NWT team as they paraded past.

"I'm just so proud to see the athletes and officials here together as representatives of the Northwest Territories," said Kakfwi.

"It's an honour to be here to receive them and I wish them well in the Games."

For NWT midget hockey coach Trent Hamm, the opening ceremonies were a glorious tribute to the athletes who worked so hard to get there. He said afterwards, his players were emotionally moved by the event.

"I think it goes without saying that the boys spent hours and hours mentally and physically preparing for these games," said Hamm.

"The opening ceremonies seemed like a culmination of all the hard work and effort they put in to get here. The youthful spirit and unity of the team during the celebration brought out a lot of feelings the boys weren't expecting.

"It was a spine-tingling feeling that told us we belonged to something bigger."

The Arctic Winter Games will officially close on Saturday, March 11.