Oft forgotten beyond the Indigenous nation of whom they are proud members, we have been proud sporting participants. Here is a quick look at some familiar faces and many not familiar.
- Wa-Tho-Huk (aka Jim Thorpe, Sac and Fox) was the first Indigenous person to win Olympic gold for his home country (U.S.) in the1912 Olympics. He went on to play both professional baseball and football. Wa-Tho-Huk was named as a charter member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and he served as the 1st president of APFA (now NFL).
- Makata Taka Hela (aka Billy Mills, Oglala Lakota) upset the heavy favorite to win the 1964 Olympic gold medal in 10,000 m race. Many consider his victory to be one of the greatest Olympic upsets in history.
- Two First Nations runners have won the Boston Marathon: Cogwagee, (aka Tom Longboat, Onondaga) in 1907 and Deerfoot (aka Ellison “Tarzan” Brown, Narragansett) in 1936 and 1939. Cogwagee then represented Canada in the 1908 Olympics. Deerfoot represented the U.S. in the 1936 Olympics.
- Ben Nighthorse Campbell (Northern Cheyenne) was the captain of 1964 U.S. Olympic judo team and served as U.S. Senator from Colorado 1993-2005.
- In the 2016 Rio games, golfer Rickie Fowler (Navajo) played for the U.S. where Lumbee gymnast Ashton Locklear served as an alternate.
- The 2018 Canadian Olympics team had four representatives from First Nations’ communities: men’s skier Jesse Cockney (Inuvialuk), women’s snowboarder Spencer O’Brien (Kwakwaka’wakw), women's hockey player Brigette Lacquette (Métis) and men’s hockey player René Bourque (Métis). The Canadian women's hockey team won silver medals, and the men's team won bronze.
Why is it so common for us to be overlooked and presumed extinct? Why, too, is it okay for athletic teams to choose offensive Indigenous mascots when there are professional Indigenous athletes playing the same sports?
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