Arctic Winter Games kick off in Canada

The Arctic Winter Games opened its 2018 games March 18 in Hay River, Northwest Territories.

The 15th edition of the biennial games is hosted by the neighboring N.W.T. communities of Hay River and Fort Smith, which are about a three-hour drive apart.

About 1,900 athletes from Canada’s North, Alaska, Greenland, Russia and Scandinavia will compete in the multi-sport competition this week.

Athletes took part in the opening ceremonies on Sunday, March 18, while most of the sporting events were set to begin March 19.

Team Nunavut’s contingent this year includes 246 coaches, mission staff and athletes, who will compete in 14 different events.

And Team Nunavik-Quebec flew in a group of 77 to compete in Arctic sports, badminton, Dene games, snowshoeing and table tennis.

The AWG is the largest multi-sport and cultural event in the circumpolar North.

The 2018 games run until March 24.