Mr. Speaker, we are just over 16 months away from the next Arctic Winter Games being hosted in Nuuk, Greenland. As you know, there are six sports which Greenland is unable to host: dog mushing, gymnastics, curling, speed skating, figure skating and midget hockey. Today I am pleased to announce that Whitehorse, Yukon, has agreed to host an alternative multi-sport event, the Arctic X Games, to coincide with the 2016 Arctic Winter Games in Greenland.
Mr. Speaker, this is great news for our athletes and territorial sport organizations affected by the exclusion of some sports from the 2016 Arctic Winter Games. They now have an event to train for and compete in, which will ultimately contribute to further development within their sport.
For many of our athletes, the Arctic Winter Games is the pinnacle of their competitive career. For others, the Games provide an opportunity to use this as a stepping stone in their development. Many of our athletes continue on to the Canada Winter Games and some have even continued on to the international stage, including the Olympics.
Mr. Speaker, can you imagine Michael Gilday and Brendan Green not having participated in the Arctic Winter Games and how that may have affected their development as the athletes and the people they have become? The opportunities and experiences provided through their participation in the Arctic Winter Games certainly helped them to represent our territory and country at many national and international events, including the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics.
Mr. Speaker, the 2016 Arctic Winter Games and the Arctic X Games will assist with the development of our athletes as the Northwest Territories prepares to host the 2018 Arctic Winter Games and send teams to both the 2015 and 2019 Canada Winter Games.
The department is committed to work with the territorial sport organizations and the Sport North Federation to prepare and send athletes to the Arctic Winter Games in Nuuk, Greenland, and the Arctic X Games in Whitehorse, Yukon, in March of 2016.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the Government of the Yukon and their sport partners for committing to host the Arctic X Games and the permanent members of the Arctic Winter Games International Committee for their commitment to send their teams to these Games in Whitehorse. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.