How one Tk'emlúps teen at the North American Indigenous Games found joy in wrestling during the pandemic

From the bleachers at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, Dawn McGrath proudly watched her 15-year-old stretch and warm up ahead of his wrestling competition.

"I'm 100 per cent proud. It's been a lot of work and a lot of dedication and I'm a firm believer of hard work pays off," the mother from Tk'emlúps te Secwepemc said of her son, Maddex.

The teen was one of several hundred B.C. athletes competing in the 10th North American Indigenous Games — particularly in a sport he says helped him deal with feelings of isolation brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I feel like for me, COVID kind of took away a lot of the physical out of myself. The way I found my way into wrestling is it was way more physically demanding. I needed to keep on top of my physical shape," Maddex, who was competing in the wrestling men's 74kg group, told CBC News. 

"Wrestling and combat sports is the biggest outlet I could give to myself."

For Indigenous youth, sports offer an opportunity to heal from the isolation of the COVID-19 lockdown, says Kúkpi7 Rosanne Casimir, chief of Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc — and tournaments like the North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) allow them to build friendships with competitors from other nations.

"All sporting events were basically not taking place, and for our youth, that's what connects us," Casimir said of the pandemic.

WATCH | Tk'emlúps teen says wrestling helped him deal with pandemic isolation:

Indigenous teen wrestler finds purpose at Indigenous Games

1 year ago

Duration 2:24

There are hundreds of BC athletes competing in the ongoing North American Indigenous Games. Wawmeesh Hamilton introduces a Kamloops teen, who says wrestling is more than just a sport.

The nation also faced other challenges around that time, including wildfires, drought and the discovery of potential unmarked graves at the Kamloops Indian Residential School.

"It was almost one kind of crisis after another," she said.

"It was definitely challenging times and a lot for everyone, especially our youth and our elders too."

More than 5,000 athletes, coaches and staff from more than 750 First Nations around the continent are participating in the games, which returned for its 10th year after being postponed in 2020. The games have been ongoing in Halifax since July 15, running through to July 23.

Maddex, who used to play hockey before the pandemic, says wrestling at the games helped him meet athletes from other Indigenous communities and connect more deeply with his Indigenous identity.

"It makes me proud to be Indigenous and it shows the power that we have in ourselves," he said.

Dawn says wrestling provided Maddex with an outlet to deal with his emotions in a healthy way, and that seeing her son regain his happiness has been the best prize. 

"He found his laugh again. There are no words for the gratitude. What the sport brought back was my child," she said.

"We are very, very proud of every child that's made it here because it does take a lot of dedication from your people, your circle. Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, everyone contributes in a very positive way. And this is the outcome — they've made it."