Team New Brunswick wins 16 medals at Indigenous games

Team New Brunswick won 16 medals at the North American Indigenous Games in Toronto in July, including three gold.

The games, aimed at young people 13 to 19 years old, are the largest sporting and cultural gathering of their kind, with more than 5,200 participants from all 13 provinces andterritories, as well as nine regions of the United States.

Eighty-five athletes from New Brunswick competed in six events, winning three gold, eightsilver, and five bronze medals.

The winners were:

• Monique Francis-Savoie,3D archery - silver
• Amber Solomon and Lindsay-Anne Tenass, badminton doubles - silver
• Mathew Dedam,badminton singles - silver
• Jada Levi-Ward, wrestling - gold
• Brooke Sacobie,wrestling - silver
• Jannah Levi-Ward,wrestling - bronze
• Seth Peter Paul,wrestling - silver
• Madison Wilson,track and field athletics - silver and gold
• Brandon Robichaud,track and field athletics - gold
• Jacob Tenass,track and field athletics- silver and bronze
• Keith Dennis,track and field athletics - silver and bronze
• Jacob Labillois,track and field athletics - bronze

Team New Brunswick also won bronze in the girls relay event,withEmily McCafferty, Sylvie Bartlett, Madison Wilson and Karissa Price.

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The province supported the athletes' participation in the games with $143,521, saying it was recognizing a call to supportIndigenousathletes set out by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Service New Brunswick Minister Ed Doherty, who is also responsible for Aboriginal affairs, said the games bring togetherthousands of young people to celebrate Indigenous culture and compete in a variety of traditional and non-traditional sports.

He called the New Brunswick team's efforts "tremendous" and said they made the province proud.

Competitions took place in 3D archery, athletics, badminton, baseball, basketball, canoe and kayak, golf, lacrosse, rifle shooting, soccer, softball, swimming, wrestling and volleyball.