The NWT’s athletes joined thousands from across the country at the 2025 Canada Games opening ceremony in St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, on Saturday evening.
Led by swimmer Tony Shi carrying the territory’s flag, just under 100 athletes, coaches and other team members representing the NWT marched into the Mary Brown’s Centre as the Games began.
NWT minister responsible for sport, Vince McKay (right), hands the NWT’s flag to Tony Shi at the 2025 Canada Games opening ceremony. Ollie Williams/Team NT
Tony Shi leads the team. Ollie Williams/Team NT
Chris Mathison had a hand in lighting the torch. Ollie Williams/Team NT
The remainder of the team – around 180 athletes and coaching staff in all – will arrive in week two. The Games run until the end of August 24.
Many events throughout the two weeks are being live-streamed by organizers. You can see photos and updates on Team NT’s Facebook and Instagram, with regular reports on cabinradio.ca alongside broadcasts on Cabin Radio from St John’s 10am-12pm each weekday.
Shi wasn’t the only NWT athlete in the spotlight. Four-time cross-country skiing Olympian Sharon Firth helped escort the Canada Games flag into the arena, a day after being inducted into the Canada Games Hall of Honour alongside her late sister Shirley Firth Larsson. Sharon competed three times at this level.
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Beach volleyball player Chris Mathison also had a role in Saturday’s opening ceremony, helping the Canada Games torch relay in its final moments as the outdoor cauldron was lit.
More: Yellowknife hosts its first open beach volleyball tourney
From Team NT: More opening ceremony photos
In total, the 2025 Canada Games expects to welcome more than 5,000 athletes across 19 sports.
Team NT is competing in basketball, beach volleyball, indoor volleyball, soccer, swimming, tennis, track and field and wrestling.
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All photos on this page: Ollie Williams/Team NT
Saturday’s ceremony leaned heavily and gleefully into Newfoundland tropes, the hosts’ team marching out to Great Big Sea’s Ordinary Day. On the media benches, a reporter could be seen using an online thesaurus to find alternatives to “folksy” – but that was the perfect word.
Attendees were treated to The Ryans and the Pittmans, a folk singalong opportunity, as well as a slice of Come From Away, the musical that relates how Gander residents cared for stranded travellers in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks.
The ceremony also incorporated multiple throat-singing performances, a choir, and the national anthem performed by the Royal Newfoundland Regiment Band.
The NWT’s athletes were third out of the tunnel into the arena behind Yukon and British Columbia, using a system that swept across Canada from west to east.
Danny Breen, the mayor of St John’s, told the athletes: “We’re incredibly proud to host you here in one of the most vibrant and welcoming cities in the country.”
Newfoundland and Labrador is dealing with wildfires as the Games begin. Evacuations have been ordered in some communities just to the west of St John’s, though organizers say there is so far no direct impact on the sports.
Premier John Hogan, addressing the Mary Brown’s Centre crowd, drew a connection between the efforts of those fighting wildfires and the dedication of the thousands of volunteers who are making the Games happen.
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Thank you, he told those involved, “for giving us something to smile about, something to cheer about.”
Among the other territories, Nunavut is sending its biggest-ever team to the Canada Games, including – for the first time – both male and female basketball teams.
The NWT’s team is roughly twice the size it was for the Niagara Games in 2022, also helped by the qualification of extra places in team sports this time around.
Team Nunavut. Ollie Williams/Team NT
Team Yukon. Ollie Williams/Team NT
Shi said he will try his hardest to reach the podium as the sporting action begins on Sunday.
“I want to do some amazing personal bests. We’re going to try our best to get a medal for our team,” Shi said, identifying the 200m individual medley and some of the relays as targets.
“It will be very hard, but that’s our goal,” he said. “We’ll be trying our best for it.”
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