Indigenous lacrosse players battle for 2028 Olympics spot
As lacrosse is set to make its Olympic return at the 2028 Los Angeles Games, descendants of the Indigenous people credited with creating the sport are fighting to compete at the world's biggest event under their flag.
Randy Staats is a top-tier sharpshooter in the National Lacrosse League and one of several Indigenous players on the Halifax Thunderbirds roster, including captain Cody Jamieson and goalie Warren Hill, who play for the Haudenosaunee Nationals.
The Haudenosaunee is comprised of players from the Six Nations, which form the Haudenosaunee Confederacy — formerly known as the Iroquois Nation — and includes the Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, and Tuscarora.
Despite playing in several World Lacrosse-sanctioned tournaments and having their flag waved and their anthem played, they still lack recognition from the International Olympic Committee.
At 31, Staats, who has represented the Haudenosaunee nation at several international tournaments since he was a teenager, said he hopes to be able to compete at the Olympic Games.
"For us, it's about being included in the sport and being recognized as our own," said Staats.
The Haudenosaunee have had issues travelling on their own Haudenosaunee passports at other international tournaments, so this fight to compete isn't new for this group, but the Olympics is a whole other level.
"For us to hopefully get recognized, I think it's going to take a lot," said Staats.
The Haudenosaunee Nationals faced a similar predicament when they attempted to travel to England for the 2010 World Championships, but the British government didn't recognize their Indigenous passports, so the team was left stranded at an American airport and missed competing in the championships that year.
They nearly missed participating in the 2022 World Championships. The tournament was considered a pre-trial for the Olympics and the team wasn't invited to play, but Ireland backed out, offering the Indigenous team their spot.
"Thanks to team Ireland, they stepped back and said, 'They can take our place because it doesn't seem right,'" said TSN lacrosse commentator Pat Gregoire, who believes the Haudenosaunee should be granted status to play at the Olympics.
"Even though the game has been accepted (at the Olympics), it feels like we are still that one step away," said Gregoire. "One step away from making this a full circle moment, by having the Haudenosaunee being able to represent their country, on their passports, with their flag, on the biggest stage."
Recently, U.S. President Joe Biden endorsed the Nationals, acknowledging their ancestors’ invention of the sport of lacrosse, and pushing for their right to compete
"Their circumstances are unique and they should be granted an exception to field their own team at the Olympics," the president remarked.
Staats knows it's a long road to the 2028 Olympics but the Haudenausonee Nationals are committed to getting there, and it's not just to play to game but for the recognition of being a sovereign nation.
"We've always had hoops and stuff jump through and over and back through again," said Staats. "It's always a challenge it seems, if we are going somewhere."
For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Canada out of world junior hockey championship with 4-3 loss to Czechia
Canada has been eliminated from the world junior hockey championship with a 4-3 loss to Czechia in the quarterfinals.
Pickering pausing in-person meeting due to alt-right threats, mayor says
Pickering Mayor Kevin Ashe says the city is pausing all in-person meetings, moving them to a virtual format, for the time being due to “alt-right” threats.
Athabasca 'chop shop' bust yields millions in stolen vehicles, heavy equipment: RCMP
RCMP have made what they call a "major recovery" of stolen property in Athabasca.
2 dead and 18 injured in Southern California plane crash
Two people died and 18 were injured Thursday when a small plane crashed through the roof of a sprawling furniture manufacturing building in Southern California where at least 200 people were working, police said.
Toys "R" Us Canada closing 5 stores, expand HMV and add play spaces to some shops
Toys 'R' Us Canada says it is closing five Ontario stores and revamping several others as it works to 'optimize' its business.
Wayne Osmond, singer and guitarist for The Osmonds, is dead at 73
Wayne Osmond, a singer, guitarist and founding member of the million-selling family act The Osmonds, who were known for such 1970s teen hits as 'One Bad Apple,' 'Yo-Yo' and 'Down By the Lazy River,' has died. He was 73.
Grieving orca mother Tahlequah carries dead baby for the second time
The famous mother orca who made waves around the world for carrying her dead calf for 17 days has suffered another tragic loss.
Former Liberal cabinet minister Marco Mendicino won't seek re-election
Marco Mendicino, a prominent Toronto member of Parliament and former minister of public safety and immigration, won't run in the next federal election, CTV News has learned.
U.S. soldier shot self in head before Cybertruck exploded outside Trump's Las Vegas hotel, officials say
The highly decorated U.S. army soldier inside a Tesla Cybertruck packed with fireworks that exploded outside Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas shot himself in the head just before detonation, authorities said Thursday.