Photo by Marcel Vander Wier
GOOD TRADE – Naomi Sala, a Dene Games athlete from Nunavik, Quebec, points out a pin she likes from the lanyard of Yukon badminton player Nora Vincent-Braun. The two would agree to the swap (top). UNWRITTEN SPORT – Yukon badminton player Mannie Sharma holds up his Arctic Winter Games pin collection, including his favourite token – the Yukon husky. Pin trading is a sport in itself at the Games.
Some call it the 21st sport of the Arctic Winter Games.
FAIRBANKS – Some call it the 21st sport of the Arctic Winter Games.
Pin trading has once again proved to be a popular activity at the multi-sport tournament, with athletes from across the North getting a conversation started with a swap of tokens.
Yukon badminton player Nora Vincent-Braun has been hard at work this week, and so far has collected a lanyard full of the coveted pins.
"I think itʼs fun to just have pins from different cultures,” the 12-year-old told the Star. "Some of the pins are actually really cool.”
Vincent-Braunʼs favourite is a Yukon husky complete with a wagging tail.
She parted with one early in order to get a N.W.T. airplane pin, complete with spinning propeller, but is unwilling to part with her second husky.
Most of her trading partners initially ask for it, but she just shakes her head. On the other hand, sheʼs found the Nunavut puzzle pin depicting a fisherman particularly hard to get a hold of.
"Itʼs really cool,” she said.
Vincent-Braun, who is competing in her first Arctic Winter Games, said most athletes start with three copies of four different kinds of pins. Itʼs up to their haggling skills to see how much that collection will grow over the week.
Rumours are swirling in Fairbanks that one witty trader bartered a pin for a jacket this week.
Mannie Sharma, also a Yukon badminton player, has a slew of pins too. He got into the trading action on his coachʼs advice.
"He told me people really like the dog pin, so I just thought about that for a while,” Sharma said. "I just kept trading and then I realized you could get good deals. Now whenever I see people with lots of pins, I just go up to them and trade them.”
Sharmaʼs younger brother, Ritik, boosted his cause early, by giving his brother all of his pins for extra bartering power.
The 14-year-old said he parted with a coveted husky for two Russian hat pins – his biggest trade of the Games.
Pin trading is widely regarded as a way for athletes to overcome language barriers.
The selection is vast, with a committee creating pins depicting each of the 20 sports as well as the nine contingents.
New pins are introduced each day, in limited supply. Many of this yearʼs pins feature Raavee, the official mascot of the Games.
The hardest pins to find are typically the puzzle pins, which take a variety of pins to complete a shape.
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