The Kenaitze Indian Tribe and Salamatof Tribe together hosted the Kahtnuht’ana Hey Chi’ula Native Youth Olympics Invitational this weekend, with competition stretching from Friday through Sunday at Kenai Middle School.
Native Youth Olympics are a series of events derived from traditional Alaska Native feats of athleticism. Across the three-day competition, athletes competed in a dozen events, including the Alaskan high kick, the scissor broad jump, the wrist carry, the seal hop and more.
The local tribes were joined by teams from Homer, Sterling, Chickaloon and Qutekcak Native Tribe from Seward.
In the Inuit stick pull, pictured above, competing athletes faced one another with their feet together. They each grabbed a long and heavy stick with both hands, pulling it towards themselves until their opponent either lost their group or were pulled up and over their heads.
Bryce Butler, competing for Salamatof Tribe, is seen here pulling his opponent — an athlete from Chickaloon — over his head and winning a round.
