The FrontRunners (also called Niigaanibatowaad or Front Runners) were a group of 10 Indigenous athletes who were torchbearers at the 1967 Pan American Games.
The members of the group were Charlie Nelson, Dave Courchene Jr., Patrick Bruyere, Charles Bittern, William Chippaway, Fred Harper, William Merasty, Russell Abraham, John Nazzie and Milton Mallett. [1] They attended residential schools across Manitoba. They were asked to run the Pan American Games flame 800 kilometres (500 mi) from St Paul, Minnesota to Winnipeg, Manitoba, specifically Winnipeg Stadium, the site of the games. Upon their arrival, "a non-Indigenous athlete was ordered to carry the torch into the stadium in front of the frenzied crowd while the FrontRunners were sent for lunch at a nearby restaurant". [2]
Surviving members of the group carried the torch into the 1999 Pan American Games, also held in Winnipeg. [3] In 2017 the group was the subject of a National Film Board film, titled Niigaanibatowaad: FrontRunners. [2]
The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. Several months before the Olympic Games, the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece. This ceremony starts the Olympic torch relay, which formally ends with the lighting of the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games. The flame then continues to burn in the cauldron for the duration of the Games, until it is extinguished during the Olympic closing ceremony.
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. As of 2021, Winnipeg had a city population of 749,607 and a metropolitan population of 834,678, making it the sixth-largest city, and eighth-largest metropolitan area in Canada.
The Pan American Games is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held among athletes from nations of the Americas, every four years in the year before the Summer Olympic Games. The only Winter Pan American Games were held in 1990. In 2021, the Junior Pan American Games was held for the first time specifically for young athletes. The Pan American Sports Organization (PASO) is the governing body of the Pan American Games movement, whose structure and actions are defined by the Olympic Charter.
Winnipeg Arena was an indoor arena located in the Polo Park district of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Canad Inns Stadium was a multipurpose stadium in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
The 1967 Pan American Games were held in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, from July 23 to August 6, 1967.
The 1971 Pan American Games were held in Cali, Colombia, from July 30 to August 13, 1971. A total of 2,935 athletes from 32 countries participated in seventeen sports.
The 1999 Pan American Games, officially the XIII Pan American Games or the 13th Pan American Games, was a major international multi-sport event that was held from July 23 to August 8, 1999, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and surrounding towns and cities. Canoeing competitions started the day before the games officially begun. Approximately 5,000 athletes from 42 nations participated at the games. A total of 330 medal events in 34 sports and 42 disciplines.
The Winnipeg Velodrome was a cycling facility built in Winnipeg, Manitoba for the 1967 Pan-American Games and managed by Winnipeg Enterprises. The facility was a banked short-track oval with a cement surface. The velodrome was located near the Winnipeg Arena and Winnipeg Stadium. Notable athletes to compete here include Jocelyn Lovell.
The Badminton Competition at the 1999 Pan American Games was held from July 23 to August 8, 1999 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. There was a total of five events. At the end of the tournament, the host country Canada won three gold medals in the men's, women's and mixed doubles, while the United States captured two golds in the men's and women's singles.
University Stadium is a multipurpose stadium located on the campus grounds of the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It features a 400m 8-lane track, as well as separate areas for long jump/triple jump, high jump, pole vault, discus, hammer, shot put, and javelin. Inside the track is a large natural grass field used for football and soccer. The stadium was home to the Manitoba Bisons football program until the team relocated next door to Investors Group Field in 2013.
Winnipeg has been home to several professional hockey, football and baseball franchises. There have also been numerous university and amateur athletes.
The Pan Am Pool is an indoor swimming facility in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada built for the 1967 Pan American Games. It is located in southwest Winnipeg and consists of three pools: two are used for competitive swimming and one is a children's "kiddie pool".
The 2015 Pan American Games, officially the XVII Pan American Games and commonly known as the Toronto 2015 Pan-Am Games, were a major international multi-sport event celebrated in the tradition of the Pan American Games, as governed by Pan American Sports Organization (PASO). The games were held from July 10 to 26, 2015 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; preliminary rounds in certain events began on July 7, 2015. These were the third Pan American games hosted by Canada, and the first in the province of Ontario. The Games were held at venues in Toronto and seventeen other Golden Horseshoe communities. The Pan American Games and 2015 Parapan American Games were organized by the Toronto Organizing Committee for the 2015 Pan and Parapan American Games (TO2015).
IG Field is an outdoor stadium in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The stadium, which opened in 2013, is located on the University of Manitoba campus next to University Stadium.
The 13th Pan American Games were held in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada from July 23 to August 8, 1999.
The 2015 Parapan American Games, officially the V Parapan American Games and commonly known as the Toronto 2015 ParaPan-Am Games, were a major international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities, celebrated in the tradition of the Parapan American Games as governed by the Americas Paralympic Committee, held from August 7 to 15, 2015 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Marking the first Parapan American games hosted by Canada, and the second major Paralympic sports event hosted by Toronto since the 1976 Summer Paralympics, the Games were held at venues in Toronto and four other Golden Horseshoe communities. Both the Parapan American and Pan American Games were organized by the Toronto 2015 Organizing Committee (TO2015).
The opening ceremony of the 2015 Pan American Games took place on Friday July 10, 2015, beginning at 8:00 p.m. EDT at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The opening ceremony was produced and directed by Cirque du Soleil. The production was the largest event produced by the company ever, and cost approximately $30 million CAD to produce.
The 2017 Canada Summer Games, officially known as the XXVI Canada Games, were held in Winnipeg, Manitoba from July 28 to August 13, 2017.
The 1999 Pan American Games were held in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and surrounding area. The Pan American Games ran from July 23 to August 8, 1999.