Posted on: September 20, 2011
Fairbanks to Host Arctic Winter Games
Fairbanks wins bid to hold the 23rd Arctic Winter Games in 2014
Fairbanks, Alaska
Fairbanks, Alaska, has the privilege of hosting the 23rd Arctic Winter Games in 2014. The Arctic Winter Games is a biennial international celebration of sport and culture that includes participants from Alaska; Greenland; Yamal, Russia; Northern Scandinavia; and the Canadian jurisdictions of Yukon, Northern Alberta, Nunavut and Nunavik Quebec. The Games feature dog mushing, arctic sports and Dene (native) games such as finger pull, pole push, stick pull and snow snake in addition to the more familiar winter sports of hockey, cross-country skiing and speed skating.
“On behalf of the Arctic Winter Games International Committee, I am excited to announce that Fairbanks, Alaska, will host the Arctic Winter Games in March 2014,” said Gerry Thick, president of the Arctic Winter Games International Committee. “In [about] three years, nearly 2,000 athletes, coaches and cultural delegates from around the circumpolar world will gather in Fairbanks and transform it into an international celebration of sport, culture and community spirit.”
Thick noted that the Fairbanks North Star borough, Fairbanks and the city of North Pole teamed up to put together an excellent bid.
“We were very pleased with the enthusiasm, organization and excellent planning that went into developing and presenting the Fairbanks bid to host the Games,” he added.
The 2012 Games will be hosted in Whitehorse, Yukon.