Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today my statement is about the largest multi-sport cultural event for youth in the nation, the 2023 Canada Winter Games. As a former city councillor in my recent political life, I was excited, to say the least, when the Canada Games Council came to Yellowknife to perform an assessment on our capital city to see if we had the capacity and ability to host the games. That was the first indication to me that we must, or why would the national council even consider coming to Yellowknife in the first place?
Mr. Speaker, the Arctic Winter Games has been instrumental in increasing the level of competition, talent, and sporting infrastructure in the Northwest Territories and throughout the circumpolar world. The Canada Winter Games could do the same for the next generation of athletic games in the Northwest Territories. Looking at Whitehorse's experience of the games in 2007 gives us a sense of the positive impacts the Northwest Territories could see. The Whitehorse games came with a $120-million price tag, but the positive economic impact was massive as the games injected millions back into almost every sector of the economy.
Visitors to Whitehorse spent nearly $9 million during those two weeks alone, according to an independent economic impact study, and many of them indicated they were likely to return in the near future, bringing a long-term boost to tourism. Investment in sporting infrastructure and athlete and coach development would help more athletes from the Northwest Territories make national teams and put us on the map as a sporting destination for future national level events. The games would also have a positive impact on the community. At last, Friday's Q and A session on the 2023 Canada Winter Games, the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs announced that the GNWT is willing to invest in an athletes’ village that post-games could be repurposed as low-income and seniors' housing.
The biggest benefit of the 2007 games, according to Whitehorse Mayor Dan Curtis, was improving healthy lifestyles and community involvement. Hosting the games would give us an opportunity to include the whole territory, not just Yellowknife; showcase our cultures; and reach out to our sister territories to the east and west, involving as many northern Canadians as possible in the event and making the games more attractive to the federal government and southern investors.
Mr. Speaker, Yellowknife's bid for the 2023 Canada Winter Games deserves serious consideration and support. At the appropriate time, I will have questions for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs on this topic. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Members’ statements. Member for Nahendeh.
Sorry. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was daydreaming there for a second. Today I would like to take the House on a journey that was shared with me by a great-grandmother recently. Like all great-grandmothers, she had a vested interest in her great-grandchildren. She had a dream for each of them. The one she shared with me started some eight years ago, when her grandson started playing soccer. She had a dream that he would one day be successful; get the chance to play soccer on national and international stages.
Well, the international stage opportunity came with Arctic Winter Games this year. This young man worked hard, attended practices on a regular basis, and played basketball as a cross-training opportunity. The first hurdle was the regional soccer camp. He and a number of friends worked extra hard, and were selected to go on to the next stage. At this point in time, you would figure it was a nice stepping stone for him, his friends, and his great-grandmother. Unfortunately, it was not the case.
After the excitement of being selected, he found out that to go on to the territorial selection process, he had to have a passport in hand by the territorial trials date. This was not going to happen because he did not have a passport photo, and he was not going to be able to get one because the ferry was going out and the ice bridge was not going to be in until early December. The option to fly to Yellowknife to get it done was not feasible. Too much cost to get him and his family there to do it. As this wise lady says, she has witnessed these types of hurdles and hindrances placed in front of Aboriginal youth, especially from small communities, too many times, and it is time something was done about it. She feels the system is stacked against the small communities and Aboriginal youth.
After reading this story, I took the time to find and speak to her grandson about this situation, and ask his take on it. His comments were that it was a very disappointing time for him and one of his friends, who was in the same boat. He was frustrated that there was limited information from the very beginning about the requirements to have the passport in hand to attend the territorial trials.
If this information was shared better, he felt that he and his friend could have gotten the picture and passport application done on time. This is very sad. I realize in bigger centres this may not be an issue, but for the smaller communities it is. Later on, I will ask the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs questions regarding the process. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
