Team Indigenous won 40 medals at the 2023 North American Indigenous Games – 10 gold, 14 silver and 16 bronze medals. Team NL finished ninth in the ranking of delegations.

More than 100 Mi’kmaw, Inuit and Innu athletes from all areas of Newfoundland and Labrador proudly wore the colours of Team Indigenous NL and competed in golf, swimming, volleyball, beach volleyball, basketball, badminton and athletics. Athletes were supported and led by Jerry Wetzel, Chef de Mission, and the Aboriginal Sport and Recreation Circle of Newfoundland and Labrador.

“I am very proud of the inspirational effort exhibited by athletes on the courts and playing fields and the exemplary manner in which they represented their Indigenous communities and their province,” said Lisa Dempster, Minister of Labrador Affairs and Minister Responsible for Indigenous Affairs and Reconciliation. “When you give youth the opportunity to succeed, they will seize the opportunity to excel and conduct themselves as ambassadors for their Indigenous heritage and their families.”

The 2023 North American Indigenous Games, which were held on the traditional homeland of the Mi’kmaw people in Halifax, brought together more than 5,000 athletes, coaches and officials from more than 756 Indigenous Nations to celebrate, share and connect through sport and culture.