Sport Tourism Canada has announced the long-awaited winner of the Canadian Sport Event of the Year Award.
After hosting the first National Aboriginal Hockey Championships in Alberta, the City of Grande Prairie was selected as the winner of the STC’s Canadian Sport Event of the Year at the Prestige Sport Tourism Awards on March 20th.
The award aims to recognize the success of an outstanding single-sport, multi-sport, or collegiate event held in Canada.
The GP-hosted NAHC brought in 350 players, 80 coaching staff, and nearly 6,000 spectators across 46 games. The city provided free admission to all games, hosted nine Indigenous vendors, featured Cree play-by-play commentary, and included a smudging teepee with an Elder for participants and spectators.
Grande Prairie Mayor Jackie Clayton continues to point to GP’s legacy as a games city, saying the city is “immensely proud” of the achievement.
“The City of Grande Prairie is immensely proud of this achievement, and for everyone in our organization and the community from the organizers to the volunteers and sponsors who made it all possible,” she says. “We have a legacy as a games city, and the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships are helping us carry that torch on.”
Grande Prairie’s legacy is set to continue during the 2025 Special Olympics Alberta Summer Games from July 11th to the 13th.
