'Play for your people': annual All Native Basketball Tournament inspires in Vancouver

Over the past week, hundreds of Indigenous youth from around B.C. have converged in Metro Vancouver to battle it out on the basketball court.

The annual Junior All Native Youth tournament brought together 82 boys and girls teams to play at several venues.

Sterling Peterson played in the tournament for five years when he was a high school student. He said the tournament is about much more than basketball.

"You represent your nation, you get to put that nation on your chest and play for your people and get to show where you're from," said Peterson during a break in play at the Capilano University Sportsplex in North Vancouver.

Playing in the tournament is in part what inspired him to play for Capilano University, starting in the fall, he said.

"A lot of kids have trouble growing up on the rez — basketball is an outlet for those kids and they use it as a way to escape reality. A lot of these communities are in the middle of nowhere with nothing else to do and this becomes their life basically, so it is big, it is really big."

Sterling's younger brother Sage Terbasket also played in the tournament, and said he's been inspired.

"I like to see what he does — he does new things everyday, I would just like to follow in his footsteps," Terbasket said.

Rob Hughes, a team coach, said he looks forward to the tournament every year. 

"It builds unity among all the teams," Hughes said. "They get to see other cultures and other nations and all that and hopefully build some friendships."

Pam Baker, a tournament coordinator, said she hopes the players will take home valuable lessons.

"You want to inspire them to eat properly and train, and number one have good sportsmanship. Sometimes it gets a little rough and we were teasing about it the other day, you know community against community, it is in the DNA. We want to hopefully help everybody come together in unity."

Sharon Seymour, grandmother and aunt, said it's her third year following the tournament — and she has lots of players to support.

"I have a couple nephews playing, and a couple grandsons on the junior team and a couple granddaughters in the junior girls, so it is an honour being here, and I just love it."

Tournament organizers are now working with Basketball B.C. to improve communication so that even players from smaller communities can get chances at provincial tryouts.

With files from Susana da Silva