Wow, Whitehorse what a year 2019 has been. Before we dive into the year in review please allow me a moment. I’ve now completed a full year (and some) in the Yukon and it has been wonderful to cover your sporting events and to tell the stories of local people doing really cool things.

The following review only touches on what went on in the year, sorry I couldn’t fit everything in. Let’s begin.

As it is the Yukon and I hear we are pretty north, it’s no surprise that winter sports dominate the first six months.

January

Cross country skier and Canadian national team member Dahria Beatty finished one place shy of matching her career-best World Cup performance after a hard-fought 16th-place finish in a cross-country skate-ski sprint race on the streets of Dresden, Germany.

The Whitehorse-based Olympian was the lone Canadian to qualify for the head-to-head heats where she held her own against many of the top Nordic sprinters in the world.

Another Yukon international athlete impressed on the world stage as freestyle skier Etienne Geoffroy-Gagnon competed in his second FIS World Cup in Font Romeau, France.

After qualifying third in his heat with a score of 88, he went on to finish 13th.

February

You can’t do a year in review in the Yukon without mentioning the Yukon Quest. Since it was an odd year, it began in Whitehorse. Due to the weather, mushers had to truck their teams from Braeburn to Carmacks.

Brent Sass was the first musher into Dawson City and carried that through winning the race. Local Hans Gatt came second after a lengthy break from the Quest.

Thirty mushers started the race and 27 finished. Hendrik Stachnau was the Red Lantern winner.

Young Yukon athletes represented the territory at the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer, Alta. Hockey player, Kyron Crosby, was the territory’s flag bearer.

For the first time, the Yukon had a team compete in FIRST Lego League. The team known as Pro.mo.tion was tasked with building a Lego robot as well as doing a project around the theme Into Orbit. Pro.mo.tion took home the teamwork award.

March

The month began with a podium finish for cross country skier Natalie Hynes who secured the Yukon its only medal at the Canada Winter Games in Red Deer.

Hynes earned bronze in the 10-kilometre classic mass start race. Her third-place time was 29 minutes, 59 seconds.

It’s funny when you look back at a year how close everything seems. That is especially true for the 2020 Arctic Winter Games, which are now only 76 days away.

The AWG made two announcements in March. The first, the mascot Däch’äw, was chosen. Däch’äw, meaning porcupine in Southern Tutchone, was illustrated by Owen McDonald.

Second, the Games announced its official theme song, Bring it North, written and produced by Yukon musician Daniel Ashley.

On the rink, the Whitehorse Peewee Mustangs became only the third Yukon team to win a medal at a B.C. Championship. They were the first peewee team to do so.

In the championship game, the Mustangs faced-off against Powell River and beat them 9-2 to win gold in the peewee tier three division.

April

On April, 6 the International Day of Sport and Development and Peace, an annual celebration of the power of sport to drive social change, community development and to foster peace and understanding, a significant Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between Yukon First Nations and the Arctic Winter Games.

The Kwanlin Dün First Nation, Ta’an Kwäch’än Council, Council of Yukon First Nations, Arctic Winter Games International Committee, and the AWG Host Society signed the MOU, committing to meaningful engagement in the celebration of sport, culture, languages and traditions.

The third annual Celebration of Sport Excellence recognized the athletic achievements of Yukons. The International Female Athlete of the Year went to Olympic cross country skier Emily Nishikawa. Geoffroy-Gagnon won the International Male Athlete of the Year.

The Special Olympics 50th Anniversary was celebrated and many coaches and athletes were awarded for their successes.

May

At the beginning of May, the country’s best First Nations hockey players arrived in Whitehorse for the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships.

The event has been held annually since 2002, and the NAHC also serves as a focal point for grassroots and regional Aboriginal hockey development. For the first time in the championship’s history, it was held in Whitehorse.

Team North, boys and girls’ teams were made up of players from the three territories. The boys’ team had a big win against Ontario in the round-robin. The girls earned a berth in the quarter-finals beating Eastern Door and North, 7-0, and New Brunswick 5-1.

Team Manitoba won the boys’ gold medal and Team Saskatchewan won the girls.

At the beginning of May, Emily King won a gold medal for the One-Foot High Kick at the Native Youth Olympics Games Alaska.

June

Let’s start on the 21st of June at the NHL Draft at Rogers Arena in Vancouver. The Buffalo Sabres are at the mic.

“With the seventh pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, the Buffalo Sabres are pleased to select from the Yukon, Dylan Cozens,” said Sabres general manager Jason Botterill.

Going seventh, Cozens became the first Yukon drafted in the first round.

“It means so much,” said Cozens during the media press conference after his name was announced. “I have so much support out there in the Yukon. There are so many people that are watching tonight and my phone is going to be absolutely blowing up when I check it after.

“I am so proud to represent the Yukon and I am so happy to be from there.”

The Yukon River Quest saw a record field as 117 teams launched their boats into the Yukon River from Rotary Peace Park to make the 715-kilometre journey to Dawson City.

The overall winner was the C2 team #wepaddletogether of Mike Vincent and Ivan English from Saskatchewan.