2019 World Eskimo-Indian Olympics (WEIO)

Page 1

2019

WEIO

• Schedule of events • Lily Miller’s sealskin balls a labor of love • Miss WEIO pageant

• Four-Man Carry champ Matthew ‘Sido’ Evans • Description of WEIO games • Native dance groups highlight festivities

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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Monday, July 15, 2019

2019 WORLD ESKIMO-INDIAN OLYMPICS

2019 WEIO schedule of events 10 a.m., Eskimo Stick Pull, Finals 12 p.m., Alaskan High Kick, preliminaries 1 p.m., Native Baby Regalia Contest, skin and cloth and fur, Pioneer Room 1:30 p.m., Greased Pole Walk, finals, outdoors behind the Carlson Center (weather permitting) 2-5 p.m., Arts and Crafts 6 p.m., Native Baby Regalia Contest, parade and awards and photos • Dance Performance • Eskimo Stick Pull, demonstrations and medals ceremony • Alaskan High Kick, finals and medals ceremony. • Dance Performance • Men’s Blanket Toss, preliminaries

World Eskimo-Indian Olympics at the Carlson Center • Schedule subject to change Free admission for daytime events (before 5 p.m.). For evening events (6 p.m. and later), admission is $15 for adults 13-59, and $10 for Elders 60-plus, military all ages and youth 6-12

Wednesday, July 17 10 a.m., Athlete registration 11 a.m., Toe Kick, finals 12 p.m., Four-Man Carry, preliminaries 1 p.m., Kneel Jump, finals 2 p.m., One-Hand Reach, preliminaries 3 p.m., Race of the Torch, five kilometers (3.1 miles), finals

Opening Ceremonies 6 p.m • March of Dance Contestants; Athletes; Miss WEIO Queen and Participants; Alaska Native Veterans posting colors; National Anthem/ Alaska Flag Song performed by The Arctic Foxes. • Invocation, given by an Elder • Recognition of Veterans • Tribal Representative granting permission to host games on Athabascan Lands • Proclamations and recognition of Native Elders • Welcome Address, by WEIO Board Chair, Gina Kalloch

16-year old Lita Johnson of Anchorage competes in the Alaskan High Kick preliminaries during the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics in 2018. ERIC ENGMAN/NEWS-MINER

• Recognition of Dignitaries in attendance and their support of WEIO • Lighting of Seal Oil Lamp and recognition of lamp tenders • Race of the Torch, Kneel Jump and Toe Kick demonstrations and medals ceremonies • Dance Performance • Women’s Blanket Toss, preliminaries. Women’s finals are Friday evening 6-10 p.m., Arts and Crafts 7:30 p.m., Miss WEIO Cul-

tural Pageant, introduction and talent show, Pioneer Room • Dance Performance • One Hand Reach, finals and medals ceremony • Fish Cutting Contest, finals and medal ceremony (contest dependent on availability of fish) • Dance Performance • Four-Man Carry, finals and medals ceremony

Thursday, July 18 9:30 a.m., Athlete regisration

7:30 p.m., Miss WEIO Cultural Pageant, impromptu speeches • Dance Performance • Muktuk Eating Contest, finals and medals ceremony

Friday, July 19 9:30 a.m., Athlete registration 10 a.m., Indian Stick Pull, finals

11 a.m., Drop the Bomb, qualifier 12 p.m., Two Foot High Kick, preliminaries 1 p.m., Native Regalia Contest, hide, cloth and fur, Pioneer Room 1 p.m., Ear Pull, finals • Fish-Cutting demonstration, outside of the Carlson Center (event is dependent on availability of fish) 2-5 p.m., Arts and Crafts 6 p.m., Dance Performance • Native Regalia Contest, parade and awards and photos • Indian Stick Pull and Ear Pull, demonstrations and medals ceremony • Two Foot High Kick, finals and medals ceremony • Women’s Blanket Toss, finals and medals ceremony • Miss WEIO Cultural Pageant, coronation of 2019 Miss WEIO and her court • Seal Skinning Contest, finals and medals ceremony (depending on seal availability) • Dance Performance • Drop the Bomb, finals and medals ceremony

Saturday, July 20 9:30 a.m., Athlete Registration 10 a.m., Bench Reach, finals 11 a.m., One Foot High Kick, Canadian Style, preliminaries 1 p.m., Arm Pull, finals 2-5 p.m., Arts and Crafts 2:30 p.m., Ear Weight, qualifier 3 p.m.,WEIO General Membership Meeting: membership comments and board elections, Pioneer Room 6 p.m., Athletes and Dancers Parade • Bench Reach and Arm Pull, demonstrations and medals ceremony • Dance Performance • One Foot High Kick, Canadian style, finals and medals ceremony •Men’s Blanket Toss, finals and medals ceremony • Ear Weight, finals and medals ceremony • Eskimo Dance Group Command Performance ( winning Eskimo Group) • Knuckle Hop, finals and medals ceremony

Closing of games

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Monday, July 15, 2019

2019 WORLD ESKIMO-INDIAN OLYMPICS

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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Sealskin balls are a labor of love for Lily Miller By Danny Martin

DMARTIN@NEWSMINER.COM

Think of sealskin balls in the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics and visions of events like the one foot high kick, Alaskan high kick and one reach hand may arise. For Lily Miller, the small spheres covered in sealskin are a labor of love. The 69-year-old caretaker has created sealskin balls since she was 17 years old and a few of her balls have been used in competitive events, particiularly kicks, at WEIO. Miller, however, has no estimate of the number of sealskin balls she’s created since she started. “I have no clue,’’ she said with a smile during a recent interview at the News-Min-

Lily Miller shows a selection of sealskin balls she’s made over the years on June 27, 2019. ERIC ENGMAN/NEWS-MINER er. “I made lots, and Eskimo yo-yos, too. “You have to have a lot of patience to sew these.� The skill was passed to Mill-

er by her mother and sister. “Just watching my mom and sister, mostly, and I asked them if I could try,’’ Miller recalled.

“If I did something that was a mistake, they would undo it. I’d have to redo the whole thing, but that’s how you learn.� Miller obtains the sealskin for the balls from relatives in her home community of Gambell. On the way to becoming a ball, the sealskin goes through a process that includes drying it to stretch it. The sealskin is later dyed. The balls also are stuffed with cotton during the sewing process. Miller’s creations are mostly from spur-of-the-moment decisions. “I just make it the way I want it. Whatever comes to mind, I just do it,’’ said Miller, who is of Siberian Yupik descent.

Miller said it takes her about three weeks to make a sealskin ball. “When I have a chance to sew, I just sit down and sew, sew, sew,’’ Miller said. “You’ve got to do a lot of stitching. Everything is all handstitched, no glue or nothing.â€? She uses a special thread for sewing leather, and the thread has a wax surface. Miller said 2015 was the last time one of her balls was used in a WEIO competition. Nicole Johnston, who has been a WEIO athlete, coach and administrator, owns a ball which Miller created and Johnston used in a WEIO competition. Johnston said she retired the ball from competition five MILLER Âť 4

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MILLER

Continued from 3 years ago to preserve it. “It’s packed away in cool, dry storage,’’ Johnston said recently by phone. Johnston, who grew up in Nome, admires Miller’s work. “It’s a pretty amazing amount of work,’’ Johnston said. “It’s a shaved, bleached sealskin hide and it requires a lot of work, and delicate work.. “A lot of time goes into the preparation. It’s a labor of love.� The balls Miller made for WEIO competitons are about the size of a baseball. Miller also has created sealskin balls with special meanings. For example, one large white ball with decorations, including a red ‘M’, is dedicated to her late husband, Edward, who died in 1988. Miller also owns a smaller ball with a green and blue trim. It was the last sealskin ball created by her sister, Ila, who died of cancer in December 2018. Contact News-Miner sports editor Danny Martin at 459-7586. Follow him on Twitter:@newsminersports.

Monday, July 15, 2019

2019 WORLD ESKIMO-INDIAN OLYMPICS

Miss WEIO pageant gives women a chance to represent communities, regional cultures By Selena Moore FOR THE NEWS-MINER

For Marjorie Tahbone, winning the Miss World Eskimo-Indian Olympic pageant in 2010 was an opportunity to represent her family, community, and culture. “It was great to meet others and talk about my culture. It was such a positive experience overall,� Tahbone said. This year, Tahbone, who now serves as secretary of the WEIO board of governors, is helping to organize the pageant which will be held during the WEIO competition at the Carlson Center in Fairbanks July 17-20. According to Tahbone, this year’s contestants will be chosen the week before WEIO begins, and will arrive in Fairbanks from across Alaska to

engage in a week of pageant activities beginning on Tuesday, July 16. Organizers are expecting six to eight contestants. Contestants come from around the state and many are winners of community pageants which represent the region of the state they are from, such as Miss ANB, Miss Caim, and Miss Bristol Bay. Winning a local pageant is not a requirement to participate in Miss WEIO though, and some contestants come to the pageant as representatives of their family. During the week of the pageant, Miss WEIO contestants participate in several community activities along with the competitive pageant events. Tahbone said that her favorite part of pageant week was getting to visit with children at Noel Wein Library to talk about reading. Con-

testants are scheduled to visit Noel Wien Library again this year, along with attending the Elder’s Lunch and possibly taking a trip on the Riverboat Discovery. These events help to prepare contestants for one of the main roles of the future Miss WEIO, namely serving as a representative of the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics and their culture. “Their job is kind of to say, this is what WEIO is about, come check it out,â€? said Tahbone. Miss WEIO contestants will be judged in several categories as part of the formal competition. These categories include the private personal interview, the talent presentation which will take place on Wednesday, July 17 at 7:30 PAGEANT Âť 5

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Monday, July 15, 2019

PAGEANT

2019 WORLD ESKIMO-INDIAN OLYMPICS

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

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NATIVE ARTS AND CRAFTS

Continued from 4

Arts and crafts by Alaska Native artists are a popular part of the WEIO festivities. Above, these ivory carvings by Savoonga artists were on display in 2018 during WEIO. ERIC ENGMAN/NEWS-MINER www.mtmckinleybank.conn Z Z Z PWPFNLQOH\EDQN FRP

We Wish the Best to All of the Competitors WEIO

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p.m., and an impromptu speech scheduled for Thursday, July 18 at 7:30 p.m. In each session, the panel of judges, selected by the Miss WEIO Pageant Committee, will consider the contestants’ knowledge of their culture and language, the confidence and poise they demonstrate, their overall presentation, and their knowledge of WEIO and current Native issues. The coronation of Miss WEIO 2019 will take place as part of the evening events on Friday, July 19 beginning at 6 p.m. After coronation, Miss WEIO 2019 will deliver an acceptance speech and assist in presenting medals to WEIO athletes. The winner will receive a $3,000 scholarship to the educational institution of their choice. Awards will also be given for the Most Talented and Most Traditional and the Miss WEIO contestants will select one of their fellow competitors for the honor of Miss Congeniality. More information about the Miss WEIO Pageant and an application packet can be found at www.weio.org.

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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Monday, July 15, 2019

2019 WORLD ESKIMO-INDIAN OLYMPICS

Evans carries a lot of weight in the Four-Man Carry, his record-setting WEIO event By Bob Eley FOR THE NEWS-MINER

Matthew “Sido� Evans is a big man who knows how to carry some weight around. After all, Evans is the world-record holder in the Four-Man Carry event at the World Eskimo Indian Olympics, which will take place for the 59th time from July 17-20 at the Carlson Center. Evans, who is a strapping 6-foot, 6-inches tall and weighs 295 pounds, carried 600 pounds of “live� weight 308feet, 10 inches to break his own world record by more than 50 feet during last year’s WEIO Games. “It was energizing,� Evans said of his world-record performance in 2018 which was about 50 feet farther than his previous record-setting effort. “At first I was exhausted and then when I realized what I had done I was pretty pumped. I was really sore a couple of hours later.� The Four-Man Carry is an event where one person has to carry four volunteers weighing about 150 pounds apiece around a guided course for as long as they can. The four people drape themselves over the participant, who lifts them off the ground and begins walking

the course. It is a test of endurance and strength. Often times during a successful hunt there comes a time when the animal caught has to be carried long distances. It is also true of packing wood or ice. The Four Man Carry attempts to simulate what had to be done in order to survive in an environment thousands of years ago. “Getting started is the hardest part,� Evans said. “The four people all have a little different weight, so to balance everything out can be difficult. It is live weight so once you get everyone off the ground it’s easy to lose your balance in the early going.� Evans and other participants can’t allow any of the volunteers they are carrying to lose their grip or fall off. Once one part of a volunteer’s body touches the ground the attempt is over. “The farther you go, the tighter they grip you because they don’t want to fall off,� Evans said. “That makes it hard to breathe and to get oxygen to your lungs so you can keep going.� Participants only get one attempt at going as far as they can carrying the four volunteers. “It’s one shot and that’s it,� Evans said. “A lot of it is chal-

lenging yourself to see just how far you can go.� With four people draped around your body, it’s hard to see where you are going so a WEIO official holds a colored card in the air that the athlete follows in order to stay on course. The Four-Man Carry isn’t an easy event to train for. You don’t often find four volunteers who weigh around 150 pounds apiece to carry around. “I do a lot of lifts, squats and carries and this year I’ve added a lot of cardiovascular training to my routine,� Evans said. “Anthony Glaze has been putting in a lot of time helping me get ready for this year’s event.� The Four Man Carry is the final event on the opening night (July 17) schedule for the 2019 World Eskimo Indian Olympics. Other events that night include the opening ceremonies, dance performances and several athletic events, including the women’s blanket toss preliminaries. The 33-year-old Evans is also the defending champion in the Exkimo Stick Pull and competes in the Indian Stick Pull as well. Contact the News-Miner sports department at 459-7586.

ERIC ENGMAN/NEWS-MINER

A guide to the games at WEIO Here are descriptions of many of the events at this year’s World Eskimo-Indian Olympics. More information about the events is available at www.weio.org.

Bench Reach The test of strength involves an athlete kneeling on a padded bench with his knees at the edge of the bench. A volunteer sits on the back of the athlete’s lower legs. The athlete leans for-

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Leroy Shangin grimaces while competing against defending champion Linc Qimiq in the men’s ear pull quarterfinals during the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics in 2017 at the Carlson Center. The ear pull is one of WEIO’s signature events.

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ward to set an object on the floor as far away as possible, then return to the original kneeling position. No part of the athlete’s body can touch the floor while he is setting down the object. Each athlete gets three attempts to place the object as far as possible. The athletes’ distances are measured from the bench to the object on the floor. EVENTS  7

Monday, July 15, 2019

EVENTS

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Drop the Bomb The event tests an athlete’s ultimate strength and it’s derived from mimicking the form of an airplane. An athlete lies chest down on the floor and extends his or her arms out while keeping the legs together. The athlete is carried by three spotters around the floor as far as possible while maintaining the rigid position. The athlete drops the bomb when he or she can no longer hold the position.

Blanket Toss The event, also known as the Nalukataq, was designed to have fun after a successful whaling season. Blankets are made from old whaling skin boats. The blankets have holes on the edges so that rope can be looped through all the way around and used for handle grips. A participant gets in the middle of the blanket and stands still while being tossed. The participant has to land on his or her feet without falling. Some participants inthe air or execute flips while being tossed. Judges rate the participants on balance, height, style ih the air, all-around form and grace.

Ear Pull The tug-of-war of ears is one of the highlights of WEIO. It’s based on withstanding pain, a trait sometimes needed to survive the harsh realities of the North. The best two-of-three competition has athletes sitting on the floor facing each other with a sinew loop around each other’s ears — right ear to righ ear, left ear to left ear. The athletes must pull their heads straight back without twisting or jerking, and pull the sinew from the other’s ear.

Ear Weight

2019 WORLD ESKIMO-INDIAN OLYMPICS It’s based on enduring the paint of frostbite, and the event involves a weight attached to a twine loop. The competitor places the loop around his or her ear and lifts it straight up. He or she walks as far as possible around the arena floorl The distance is measured from the starting line to where teh athlete drops the weight. Athletes also get up to three warnings by an official to correct their form during the journey around the floor.

Fish Cutting The contest derives from the cutting and drying of fish to preserve it for the seasons to come. A contestant must remove the head and fillet the fish while keeping the tail attached. The contestant must then remove the backbone and notch for drying. Participants are judged on speed and neatness.

Four-Man Carry It’s based on a hunter having to carry his game meat packed and for long distances. It also applies to hauling ice or wood. The object is for the competitor to travel as far as he or she can around the arena floor while carrying four volunteers.

Kneel Jump The event is based on the speed and agility that a person needs when hunting on the ice, or moving from an ice floe during spring break-up. The kneel jump begins with the athlete sitting ont he floor with his or her knees behind the starting line, with the soles of their feet up. The athlete then thrusts his or her body up and forward to a standing position. The objective is to go for distance and maintain balance.

Knuckle Hop Also known as the seal hop, the game is a test of strength and tolerance to pain and it

involves how far competitor can go while in a push-up position on the floor. The event was originally played on the floor of a traditional community center or hut, or outside on the ground.

Greased Pole Walk The event tests the balance that a person may need for crossing creeks or manuevering on a wet and slippery log. Entrants are barefoot as they start from one end and try to walk to the other end of a horizontal greased log. Spotters are placed on each side of the log to ensure the safety of the participants.

Alaskan High Kick The athlete sits on the floor with one hand holding the opposite foot. The other hand and foot are on the floor to established balance. The athlete then lifts himself or herself from the position and swings the legs to kick a suspended object, such as a sealskin ball. An athlete gets three attempts for each height and has a three-minute time limit to execute a kick. The game was originally played during long winter months to maintain and test a person’s agility.

One Foot High Kick (technical in odd years) The athlete approaches the ball by taking off on both feet, jumping up and kicking the ball with one foot. He or she lands on the same foot used to kick the target. Each participant gets three kicks at each height and has three minutes to execute a kick.

Two Foot High Kick (technical in odd years) After taking off, the athlete jumps up and kicks the ball with both feet parallel. He or she then lands on both feet simultaneously while maintaining balance. Each participant gets three

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

kicks at each height and has a three-minute time limit per kick. Traditionally, the two-foot high kick was used in whaling villages as a form of communication. When a whale or other game had been taken, a messenger would run back toward the village. When the messenger was within sight of the village, he would jump up and kick both feet in the air. It was a signal to villagers that a whale or other game had been caught and to prepare themselves to help the hunters.

Muktuk Eating Contest The fun event invovles participants trying to eat pieces of muktuk (skin and blubber of a whale) the fastest. Each participant must provide his or her own knife.

One-Hand Reach The game of balance and strength was traditionally played during winter months to help people maintain fitness. The athlete balances on one hand with his or her elbow tucked under the lower abdominal area. The other hand is used to steady the athlete’s balance while he or she reaches for a for a suspended target, such as a ball. After touching the target, the athlete returns to the starting position to demonstrate balance to officials. Each athlete gets three attempts and has three minutes to execute each attempt. After each successful attempt, the height of the suspended objet is raised.

Seal Skinning The event is derived from skinning seals. The skins are used to make clothing; the blubber is rendered into oil; and the meat can be cooked, dried or fermented. Contestants provide their ulus or knives, and they’re judged for speed and neatness

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during the contest. The contestant first cuts around the flippers and removes them or leaves them attached to the carcass. He or she then cuts around the head and leaves it on the carcass. The contestant then removes the skin as neatly as possible.

Eskimo Stick Pull The game of strength is based on bringing up a seal from a hole in the ice. Two athletes sit and face each other with the soles of their feet pressed together and their knees slightly bent. A stick is placed between them above the toes. A coin toss determines the position of the contestants’ hands on the stick — one gets to grip the inside of the stick and the other gets the outside grip. The objective is to pull the opponent over or pull the stick away from the opponent.

Indian Stick Pull The best-of-three event mimics grabbing a fish by the tail to pull it out of the water, or to gather it from a fish wheel and toss it ashore. Opponents sit facing each other and grab a greased, small stick with a hand-shaking motion. They try to wrest the stick from each other. Jerking and twisting are allowed.

Toe Kick The game duplicates the agility, balance and quick feet a person needs for negotiating rotten ice during spring break-up. The athlete stands at the starting line with toes to the line, and he or she jumps forward to tap or kick a small stick backwards. The feet must land parallel of the stick’s measured mark. Each athlete gets three attempts at a given distance, and after a successful kick, the stick is moved four inches farther away from the starting line.

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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

2019 WORLD ESKIMO-INDIAN OLYMPICS

Monday, July 15, 2019

WEIO dance groups give annual event a festival feeling By Danny Martin DMARTIN@NEWSMINER.COM

Alaska Native dances used to be a contest in the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics. The WEIO Board of Governors removed the competitive part. In 2018, the dance contest became a dance festival for the annual four-day celebration of Alaska Native games and culture at the Carlson Center. “It opens up the celebration of the dance more than if it’s in the confines of a contest,’’ Gina Kalloch, chairwoman of the WEIO Board of Governors, said in a recent phone interview. The WEIO Board of Governors and dance groups met in 2017 to discuss the transition to a dance festival. Logistics was part of the reason for the

change. “When it was a competition, they only danced a certain number of times, and many of them came from so far away,’’ Kalloch said. “They were about wanting to share the dancing more than winning the trophy.” The change, said Kalloch, had a positive impact among the dance groups for the 2018 WEIO. “Before, you only had one slot when you were dancing in front of the judges,’’ she said. “Now, we’re able to put them in more places in the (WEIO) program and they’re not tied to a competitive structure.” During each evening session of this year’s WEIO, there are at least three dance performances scheduled. The evening sessions are for events which start at 6 p.m., and later

Pearl Gordon, 8, performs with the Barrow Dancers during the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics at the Carlson Center in 2016. ERIC ENGMAN/ NEWS-MINER

at the Carlson Center. Each dance group has a 20-minute time limit for its performance. Dances have special meanings in Alaska Native communities.

“In any kind of community gathering in the Native tradition, whether it’s for a happy reason or a sad reason, dance is pretty much part of the expression,’’ Kalloch said. “It’s a way of expressing kinship

and culture. “With a lot of dances, you’re telling stories.” Dances also are passed down through generations. Contact News-Miner sports editor Danny Martin at 459-7586.

welcomes all WEIO participants, athletes & their families!

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