Calgary officials still hope to stage multi-sport event after “disappointing” loss of North American Indigenous Games

Lowa Beebe is confident that an Indigenous multi-sport event will still be held in Calgary during the summer of 2027, but that competition will not be the North American Indigenous Games (NAIG).

The NAIG Council announced Aug. 7 that it was withdrawing Calgary’s hosting rights to the 2027 Games. NAIG Council officials were expected to provide an update in the coming weeks on how they would move forward. Whether the Council will simply move NAIG to another city for 2027 has yet to be addressed.

But Beebe, who was serving as the CEO of the Calgary Host Society, said those planning the ’27 NAIG are not waiting to hear the NAIG Council’s decision.

Rebranding discussions have already taken place to stage a new multi-sport event in Calgary, said Beebe.

Beebe spoke with Windspeaker.com following the Calgary Host Society’s response statement, released on Aug. 15, which cited the “deeply disappointing decision” of the NAIG Council, “shifting requirements and unreasonable demands”,  and withheld operational funding leading to a lack of resources needed “to plan and deliver the Games as envisioned.” 

“The North American Indigenous Games were founded to be Indigenous-led and Indigenous-driven. That principle has been lost in this process,” said host society chair Dr. Wilton Littlechild in the statement. “While this decision is a setback, it is not the end. We will move forward with a new vision that stays true to our values, guided by the spirit of sport, culture, and reconciliation.”

Beebe said there’s already been a lot of planning done, “so, we’re going to see what we can still go ahead with the planning and the relationship building that we’re doing.”

She said three weekly organizational meetings will be held to determine next steps for those seeking to establish a new Games in Calgary. The first meeting will be on Aug. 21.

“I’m hoping (rebranding happens) fairly soon because we have the interest,” Beebe said. “Part of our major disappointment was those athletes… that are going to be certain ages for that summer and were already having several tryouts. 

“People were already calling us for hotels and where the best place to stay. So, we do know that there was major interest, for sure, for it happening in Calgary. And so, we want to make sure we make fast decisions if we’re going to be moving forward.”

The next NAIG had been scheduled for July 25 to July 31, 2027. Beebe said she’s hopeful a rebranded Games will be staged that summer, but not necessarily during the same previously announced dates.

“They weren’t clear on their release,” she said of whether NAIG Council would hold a ‘27 Games. “They just said to stay tuned. But, I do know for ourselves, if you’re planning an event with thousands of athletes in a major city, we definitely want to keep the momentum going.”

NAIG Council officials said they opted to withdraw Calgary’s hosting rights, in part, because critical benchmarks were not met.

Beebe said the challenges the Calgary Host Society faced were, in large part, because it did not have its actual hosting agreement in place.

NAIG Council awarded the 2027 Games to Calgary in July 2023. Beebe said the host society was placed on probation from the start, needing to meet certain criteria set by the NAIG Council in order to receive the hosting agreement.

“They kept, I would say, almost moving the goal post,” Beebe said. “They would say this and then they would say that. And it was several things. If I count from January until now, it’s well over 15 things that were asked of us that we accomplished and did and, ultimately, we still did not get the host agreement.” 

Beebe said representatives from the host society were not caught off guard by NAIG Council’s decision to take away the Games.

“It did not blindside us,” she said. “What I’ll say is definitely there was disappointment. We definitely did not come this far to not believe that we were going to get it. And so, we definitely respected their decision. There was nothing else that we could do. And I think all of us felt that we had done everything that we could within the parameters that we had.”

Beebe said promised funding for the Games from Tourism Calgary was withheld. And without a hosting agreement, the host society could not receive any provincial or federal funding that previous Games’ operators had received.

“The host agreement is what needs to be in place before we can accept private sponsorships or accept grants,” Beebe said. “If they’re not going to give you the host agreement, then they won’t allow you to accept funds.”

Beebe said that won’t be an issue now if the rebranded Games are established.

“Going forward, we’re not working with NAIG, so, we’ll be able to accept the funds that we want to accept,” she said.

The NAIG have been held 10 times, most recently in Halifax in 2023. The Games were first held in Edmonton in 1990 with Littlehild being one of the NAIG founders. He was appointed chair of the 2027 host society earlier this year.

“It’s been difficult to see the founder of the Games being disrespected in different ways from the city and from the NAIG Council,” Beebe said.

She confirmed Littlechild is committed to staging a 2027 Calgary event.

“He’s the one leading our rebranding,” Beebe added.