.

Home page

Text size

E-mail this page

INUVIK - Never has four-time Olympian Sharon Firth of Aklavik doubted whether athletes from the North could compete on the world stage.

But the current Yellowknife resident, who was raised and developed into a world-class skier here in Inuvik, wonders about the government's commitment to producing such athletes.

Arctic sports standout Kyle Kuptana, right, poses with former Olympian Sharon Firth who was in town for the territorial government and Olympic Games partnership announcement on Thursday. - Andrew Rankin/NNSL photo

"It's too late for this Olympic Games, they should have thought about it a long time ago," said Firth, who attended Thursday's Olympic partnership announcement in Inuvik.

The gifted Gwich'in athlete competed in the '72 , '76, '80, and '84 Winter Games. She said she was privileged to have a full-time coach help her reach her full potential, but she laments that many of the NWT's most talented athletes rely on the services of a volunteer coach because of the lack of government funding.

As a youth program adviser with the territorial government, Firth is trying to change that by lobbying for financial support for our best athletes.

"We have phenomenal athletes here and they deserve all the help they need to succeed," she said. "We have to be willing to make a commitment to provide our best athletes with full-time coaches, because it shows that we truly believe in them. If we have our champions, we need to support our champions."

Firth said a young person's desire to be their best is also essential, and reaching the top is a struggle. That, she said, is where friends, family and community leaders come in.

"We must encourage them to excel, that's so important," she said. "It doesn't have to be the Olympics, it could be anything wonderful in life. That starts with promoting wellness in our youth.

"My dream was to see the world. We trained hard. It's a life-long career and you sacrifice a lot but you also gain a lot. If you have that desire to excel, you will. Anything in life, anything is possible."

Thanks to a network of support as well as self discipline and motivation, Firth was able to succeed. But she said it's not easy with all of today's distractions.

"When you have a dream and you believe in yourself, don't let anyone take that away from you," she said.