"Kyle Worl"

For athlete Alexandria Toloff, the events are more than just the games — they are also about the culture, the dancing, the food and seeing your community come together.

The games are based on hunting and survival skills that allowed the Inupiaq people to live in Arctic conditions.

Alaska Public Media’s Jeff Chen photographed the 2021 World Eskimo-Indian Olympics last week on Thursday and Friday evening in Fairbanks. Here’s a snapshot.

Skagway students have been learning traditional Alaska Native games in preparation for the Junior Native Youth Olympics. The town’s new Native Youth Olympics club is part of a wider effort to develop more Native sports programs throughout Southeast Alaska.

Organizers of the Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse, Yukon, made a decision to cancel the event over coronavirus concerns. The cancellation sent shockwaves of disappointment across the Arctic Circle.

Juneau athletes set new personal records and placed in one event at the Native Youth Olympics that wrapped in Anchorage. It was Juneau’s first team in almost 30 years.

Juneau is getting ready to send its first team to the statewide Native Youth Olympics competition in almost 30 years. At least 10 middle and high school athletes will travel to Anchorage in late April to compete, but as their coach says, their biggest opponent will be themselves.

Every year, hundreds of students from around the state gather in Anchorage for the Native Youth Olympics. For the first time since 1983, Juneau is putting together a team.