REGINA, SASK.
The North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) is an event that eleven Deh Cho athletes will remember for a long time.

photo courtesy of Amos Scott/Aboriginal Sports Circle of the NWT Fort Providence's Spencer Bonnetrouge sends a birdie toward his opponent during one of his matches July 21 at the North American Indigenous Games in Regina.

Six athletes from Fort Providence, one from Fort Liard and four from Fort Simpson participated in the games that started in Regina on July 20 and wrapped up on Sunday. They brought back memories, friendships and in one case, a medal.

Lynsey Landry of Fort Providence was the only Deh Cho athlete who reached the medal podium, winning a silver medal in the traditional archery U19 female division. After five sessions she had a score of 464, only 10 points behind the gold medalist.

Archery was a family affair for the Landrys. Lynsey's younger sister Elaine competed in the U19 female compound division and her older sister Adeline and her father Edward were both coaches for the NWT archery team.

Edward is a supportive coach, said Elaine.

"He's telling us to do our best," added the 18-year-old.

This was Elaine's first time at NAIG and Lynsey's second. The archery course was challenging because the 3-D animal targets were set in wooded areas and it was hot with mosquitoes everywhere, said Elaine, who finished ninth with a score of 355. Like many athletes, she said she was learning and improving as a result of competing at NAIG.

"It's really fun. I'm really enjoying myself here," she said July 25.

Fort Providence also had two other athletes on the archery team – Julien Antoine finished 11th and Nolan Bonnetrouge tied for seventh in the U16 and U19 traditional male divisions respectively.

"It's been going good," said Nolan, 18, on July 25 with one more day of competition to go.

Nolan said that he was enjoying seeing old friends and meeting people from across Canada and the U.S. while taking in the sites in Regina.

Fort Providence was also represented on the badminton courts. Christina Bonnetrouge and Spence Bonnetrouge competed in U19 female and male badminton respectively. They joined forces in the U19 mixed doubles.

"I'd rather be on the court with him than anyone else," said Christina.

"It was great because we kind of know what to do on the court together because we've been playing two years together."

The pair played four matches winning their first two, losing another and then losing in the quarter finals to Saskatchewan. In singles Christina had a 2-2 record and in doubles lost all of her matches along with Kyla Milne of Hay River, but by close margins.

"I'm treating it as a learning experience," she said.

At 16, Christina has fewer years of experience than many of her opponents. Just by playing different people you learn and develop new strategies, she said.

Spencer, 18, was also feeling good about his performances. In singles he also had a 2-2 record and in the doubles made it to the quarter finals with Ryan Dragon of Hay River before losing to Nunavut.

"It was a pretty good experience," he said.

The basketball courts are where Fort Simpson had its representation at NAIG.

Tyler Lafferty played on the U16 male team that Neil Barry coached and Devan Horassi, both of Fort Simpson, managed. On July 21 the team had the only win of any NWT basketball team this year at NAIG with a 40-39 victory over Manitoba.

"It was really special to me. I was really glad to be a part of that," said Lafferty.

The whole team was excited by the win and the crowd was "insane," the 16-year-old said. With a one-win, two-loss record, the team finished fifth in their division, tied with Ontario.

Lafferty said playing at NAIG allowed him to compare how he's doing against athletes his own age. The competition was harder than he expected, with bigger and stronger players on many of the teams.

The huge opening ceremonies stood out for Lafferty and Bryce Hardisty-Phillips, both of whom had never been in a football stadium before.

Hardisty-Phillips, Warren Cli and Zehro'h Waugh of Fort Simpson were all guards for the U14 male basketball team.

"We did pretty good," said Hardisty-Phillips.

The team didn't win any of its games, but didn't have any blow-outs. Hardisty-Phillips, 13, said the second game against Colorado, which ended 50-33, was the team's best.

"The team was doing well with nice passes," he said.

Deneze Nakehk'o, the team's coach, said he was proud of the team, which was young in its division with some players aged 10, 11 and 12.

"They worked hard. They all stuck together as a team," he said.

At age 11, Cli was one of the team's youngest players. Like all of the athletes he showed a lot of potential. He's highly skilled and is a natural leader on the court, said Nakehk'o.

The younger players like Hardisty-Phillips are hoping to compete in the next NAIG.

"I like it here. I really don't want to leave," he told the Drum while at the games.

James Duntra of Fort Liard was also at the games on the U16 male soccer team. The team lost three games and tied 3-3 against Ontario.