The recent handgames tournament in Whati was a bigger success than anybody could have anticipated, according to the communitySA国际影视传媒檚 recreation coordinator, Samantha Migwi.

The event was held at the local youth and recreation centres from Oct. 13-15.

When planning for the tournament began a couple of weeks earlier, it was intended to focus on youth specifically, but when the Tlicho Government reached out in hopes of collaborating, it took on a life of its own.

SA国际影视传媒淲e were anticipating just to have a small tournament focused on the youth,SA国际影视传媒� Migwi said. SA国际影视传媒淭he week before the tournament we were approached by Tlicho Government. They said, SA国际影视传媒楲etSA国际影视传媒檚 make the prize money big, letSA国际影视传媒檚 get everybody together.SA国际影视传媒�

SA国际影视传媒淲ithin that one-week time frame, we kind of just put our heads together on planning.SA国际影视传媒�

With the T艂寞ch谦 GovernmentSA国际影视传媒檚 support, the tournamentSA国际影视传媒檚 prize pot was raised from $15,000 to $30,000, with $10,000 earmarked for the winner, $8000 on the line for second place, and the remainder divided among the third, fourth and fifth place teams.

The tournamentSA国际影视传媒檚 hefty prizes attracted competitors from Lutsel KSA国际影视传媒檈 and Gameti, who flew in on charters.

When registration concluded on the night of Oct. 13, there were 28 teams in the running for top spot.

Spectators also showed up in droves.

SA国际影视传媒淚 think we had about 2,000 people total that came to see and watch and play,SA国际影视传媒� Migwi said.

The competition ran late on the first two nights of the tournament, with FridaySA国际影视传媒檚 games concluding after midnight, and SaturdaySA国际影视传媒檚 games running until 2 a.m. Sunday morning. Both days also ended with some late-night drum dancing.

Things were a bit more subdued on Sunday, with games kicking off after church around 2 p.m., and concluding by 8:30 p.m.

By the time the event wrapped up, Leon Nitsiza was in first place, Clarence Mackenzie was in second, and William Beaverho, Logan Nitsiza and Carter Wetrade rounded out the top five.

While not everybody could take home a prize, everyone seemed to have an enjoyable time, Migwi said.

SA国际影视传媒淲e had some good celebrations and great matchups,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淓verybody enjoyed the social gathering, which was really nice to see.

SA国际影视传媒淪ocial gatherings are very big in the Indigenous community,SA国际影视传媒� she added. SA国际影视传媒淓veryone wants to come together and share their stories and knowledge.SA国际影视传媒�

For Migwi, who had never organized a handgames tournament before, the highlight of the weekend was watching the way young people and Elders interacted during the festivities.

SA国际影视传媒淲hen it comes to having youth on the team, we want to make sure that they are also learning how to play the game and how to use hand signals, and keeping that language,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淗aving these tournaments and gatherings tends to be very important to the Elders too. TheySA国际影视传媒檙e all we have left. Learning from them as much as we can is what weSA国际影视传媒檙e trying to do.SA国际影视传媒�

While the organizers of WhatiSA国际影视传媒檚 latest handgames tournament have certainly earned some downtime, there wonSA国际影视传媒檛 be much opportunity for a break, as Migwi and her team are already hard at work planning the 6th Annual Therese Nitsiza Volleyball Tournament in the community, slated for the weekend of Oct. 28.