Indoor volleyball is one of the sports in the Arctic Winter Games, which is the world’s largest northern multi-sport and cultural event.
The Wood Buffalo 2023 Arctic Winter Games includes athletes from the Northwest Territories, Yukon, Nunavut, Alaska, Greenland, Russia (Yamal), Nunavik (Northern Quebec), Northern Alberta and the Indigenous people (Sami) of Norway, Sweden and Finland.
Athletes that are 19U (born in 2004 or later) and live north of the 55th parallel (map) are eligible to tryout. Players on a college (Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association) or university (U Sports) varsity volleyball roster are not eligible. Members of the Canadian National Junior Volleyball Team or athletes ever holding a senior card (defined by Sport Canada) are also ineligible. For more information please contact Jim Plakas at jplakas@volleyballalberta.ca.
Arctic Winter Games: NEW The Arctic Winter Games International Committee (AWGIC) has revoked its Policy on Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccines to align with current public health advice. Updated Notification
To successfully register you must first purchase a membership for the participant (Youth Development Player – Tryout), activate your Sportlomo account, then purchase the event (program) registration. Registration opens November 10th at 9:00 am.
Tryout Dates: December 9 – 11, 2022
Locations: Grande Prairie & Fort McMurray
Men’s Tryouts: December 9 (Fort McMurray) and December 17 (Grande Prairie)
Women’s Tryouts: December 9 and 10 (Grande Prairie) and December 11 (Fort McMurray)
Groups and times will be emailed out closer to the registration deadline on December 7th, 2022.
2023 Team Alberta North
The 2023 Arctic Winter Games was held in Wood Buffalo, Alberta January 29 – February 4, 2023.
| Team Alberta North Women | Team Alberta North Men |  |
| #1 Reece Holman | #4 Aneesh Jhanwar | |
| #2 Samantha Langdon | #5 Trysten Kim | |
| #4 Katelyn Mazurkewich | #6 Reece Hutchinson | |
| #6 Natasa Maric | #7 Hudson Forbes | |
| #7 Alandra Humbke | #8 Caiden Kim | |
| #9 Emma Park | #9 Jackson McGillvray | |
| #10 Evangeline Zeyha | #10 Carson King | |
| #11 Indira Germain | #11 Cooper Paulovich | |
| #13 Savannah Lambert | #13 David Villiger | |
| #14 Tess Weber | #14 Tino Kwatara | |
| Head Coach: Shane Zeyha | Head Coach: Peter Peraino | |
| Assistant Coach: Shaun Park | Assistant Coach: Helly Kim | |
| Women’s Alternates: | Men’s Alternates: | |
| Klara Kubicka | Jace Lunn | |
| Erin Noskey | Alex Golnick | |
| Allie McCracken | Rudra Patel | |
| Halle Brough |
Men’s Results: Gold Medal
Round Robin:
Alberta North (2) vs. Alaska (0): 25-20, 25-15
Alberta North (2) vs. Northwest Territories (0): 25-14, 25-21
Alberta North (2) vs. Nunavut (0): 25-15, 25-17
Alberta North (2) vs. Yukon (0): 25-17, 25-21
Alberta North (2) vs. Alaska (0): 25-18, 25-20
Alberta North (2) vs. Northwest Territories (0): 25-16, 25-13
Alberta North (2) vs. Nunavut (0): 25-16, 25-13
Alberta North (2) vs. Yukon (0): 25-9, 25-11
Semi-Final: (Thursday, February 2 @ 2:00pm)
Alberta North (3) vs. Nunavut (0): 25-9, 25-11, 25-14
Final – Gold Medal (Friday, February 3 @ 11:15am)
Alberta North (3) vs. Yukon (0): 25-19, 25-17, 25-14
Women’s Results: Gold Medal
Round Robin:
Alberta North (3) vs. North West Territories (0): 25-17, 25-17, 25-11
Alberta North (3) vs. Alaska (0): 25-20, 25-19, 25-22
Alberta North (3) vs. Yukon (0): 25-17, 25-15, 25-17
Alberta North(3) vs. Nunavut (0): 25-10, 25-7, 25-9
Alberta North (3) vs. Greenland (0): 25-7, 25-9, 25-8
Semi-Final (Friday, February 3 @ 9:00am)
Alberta North (3) vs. Greenland (0): 25-16, 25-17, 25-10
Final – Gold Medal (Saturday, February 4 @ 11:15am)
Alberta North (3) vs. Alaska (1): 25-19, 23-25, 25-20, 25-13
2022 Team Alberta North
The Arctic Winter Games International Committee announces postponement of the Wood Buffalo 2022 Arctic Winter Games in proactive response to the COVID-19 Pandemic. To read the press release, click HERE
2020 Team Alberta North
2020 Arctic Winter Games Cancelled Due to COVID-19 – to read the press release, click HERE
Team Alberta North participates in volleyball at the Arctic Winter Games, the 2020 Arctic Winter Games were scheduled to be held in Whitehorse, Yukon, March 15-21.
Congratulations to the athletes selected to Team Alberta North (Rosters), the team will be competing in the 2020 Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse, Yukon, March 15-21.
2018 Team Alberta North
The 2018 Arctic Winter Games were held in Hay River & Fort Smith, North West Territories (South Slave Region) March 18-24. Below are the rosters and results from this event.
| Team Alberta North Women | Team Alberta North Men |  |
| #1 Tori Macooh, Spirit River | #4 Ryan Breen, Sexsmith | |
| #2 Amy Chailler, Grande Prairie | #5 Andrew Fogle, Grande Prairie | |
| #3 Hannah Potratz, Grande Prairie | #6 Tyler Funk, Grande Prairie | |
| #4 Taylor McDonald, Grande Prairie | #7 Jacob Braun, Fort McMurray | |
| #6 Rachel Perry, Grande Prairie | #9 Thomas Chmilar, Grande Prairie | |
| #8 Vanessa Loos, Grande Prairie | #10 Bradley Noskey, Grande Prairie | |
| #10 Emily Batt, Grande Prairie | #12 Levi Power-Fardy, Grande Prairie | |
| #11 Stephanie Miller, Grande Prairie | #13 Patrick Tuttle, Grande Prairie | |
| #12 Ashley Rafferty, Peace River | #14 Josh Dumont, Grande Prairie | |
| #15 Hayley McNaught, Woking | #15 Justice Bigstone-Cardinal, Wabasca | |
| Coach: Erin Henning | Coach: Hugh Bartlett |
Men’s Results:
Round Robin:
Alberta North (3) vs. Nunavut (0): 25-13, 25-12, 25-13
Alberta North (3) vs. Yukon (0): 25-8, 25-10, 25-10
Alberta North (3) vs. Alaska (0): 25-10, 25-5, 25-11
Alberta North (3) vs. North West Territories (0): 25-19, 25-10, 25-10
Alberta North (3) vs. Greenland (0): 25-10, 25-9, 25-9
Semi-Final: (Friday, March 23 @ 10:30am)
Alberta North (3) vs. Nunavut (0): 25-12, 25-12, 25-13
Final – Gold Medal (Saturday, March 24 @ 9:30am)
Alberta North (3) vs. North West Territories (0): 25-14, 25-14, 25-11
Women’s Results
Round Robin:
Alberta North (3) vs. North West Territories (0): 25-7, 25-4, 25-10
Alberta North (3) vs. Alaska (0): 25-12, 25-18, 25-21
Alberta North (3) vs. Greenland (0): 25-10, 25-13, 25-8
Alberta North(3) vs. Nunavut (0): 25-11, 25-9, 25-13
Alberta North (3) vs. Yukon (0): 26-24, 25-12, 25-17
Semi-Final (Friday, March 23 @ 1:30pm)
Alberta North (3) vs. Nunavut (0): 25-10, 25-10, 25-16
Final – Gold Medal (Saturday March 24 @ 12:00pm)
Alberta North (2) vs. Alaska (3): 10-25, 25-21, 23-25, 25-23, 6-15
2016 Arctic Winter Games
The 2016 Arctic Winter Games were held in Nuuk, Greenland from March 6-11, 2016.
Team Alberta North volleyball had a fantastic week in Nuuk, Greenland. Both teams went undefeated through the round robin, and advanced to the gold medal finals. The women’s team had a great battle against Alaska, but came up a little short in the fifth set 25-18, 14-25, 23-25, 25-17, 9-15, bringing home silver. The men’s team went up against a scrappy Yukon squad, but managed to come out on top in straight sets 25-23, 25-18, 25-13, winning the gold medal.
A big thank you to all the volunteers and organizers who put on an amazing sporting and cultural experience for all the participants.
Congratulations to Team Alberta North:
| Team Alberta North Women | Team Alberta North Men |  |
| #1 Stephanie Miller | #1 Brant Cartwright | |
| #3 Shania Stone | #2 Owen Frederiksen | |
| #4 Leah Holtz | #4 Xander Forgie | |
| #5 Quinn Pelland | #6 Marshall Koch | |
| #7 Gabriella Podolski | #7 Carter Nadkrynechkny | |
| #8 Katrina Dawe | #8 Evan Bonnamour | |
| #9 Lauren Lauze | #10 Dane Vandeligt | |
| #10 Janai Martens | #11 Tristan Moon | |
| #11 Teneille Jarvis | #12 Eric Turner | |
| #12 Jada Lea | #15 Sidney Schellenberg | |
| Coaches: Hugh Bartlett & Stacey Head | Coaches: Stacey Head & Hugh Bartlett |
2014 Arctic Winter Games
Team Alberta men and women won gold at the 2014 Arctic Winter Games in Fairbanks, Alaska. Congratulations to both of these teams! Click on the following link to view the tournament results.
| Team Alberta North Women | Team Alberta North Men |  |
| Leah Friesen | Justin Benoit | |
| Kennedy Hall | Jeremy Cardinal | |
| Megan Koch | Sean Douglas | |
| Davis Lojczyc | Talon Durrant | |
| Taylor Pelland | Dylan L’Hirondelle | |
| Gabriela Podolski | Devin Lambert | |
| Kailie Rogan | Tristan Simmonds | |
| Amie Slawson | Jason Smith | |
| Makayla Teichroeb | Kale Smith | |
| Jessica Winterford | Elliot Ulland | |
| Coach: Jenice Warkentin | Coach: Jeff Smith | |
| Alternates: Brynelle Barrs Kirsten Rodacker | Alternates: Ryan Fogle Mitchell Luck |
2012 Arctic Winter Games
The 19U Men’s Team Alberta North returned from Whitehorse, Yukon with a silver medal from the 2012 Arctic Winter Games.
The Arctic Winter Games is the world’s largest northern multi-sport and cultural event. The Games include the participation of teams from Alaska, Yukon, Northwest Territories, Alberta North, Nunavut, Greenland, Yamal, Nunavik Quebec and Sapmi.
After finishing their round robin play with a 7-2 record, the team quickly disposed of Alaska in straight sets in the semi-final. That semi-final victory put Team Alberta North up against the Yukon in the championship match. After previously losing both round robin games to the Yukon, Alberta was looking for a different result but was defeated once again in straight sets.
Volleyball Alberta is proud of the accomplishments of team and how they represented their province at this competition. The 2012 Team Alberta North members were:
| Team Alberta North Men |
| Kirk Testawitch |
| Michael Cepuch |
| Kyle Erikson |
| Kyle Monagle |
| Dalyn Lauze |
| Hans Grottrowski |
| Cole Penson |
| Ryan Chaffey |
| Matthew Hammond |
| Brendan Harnett |
| Head Coach: Keegan Kuhr |
2012 Arctic Winter Games Team Alberta Results:
March 5
Alberta North 2 vs Greenland 0 (25-13, 25-12)
Alberta North 2 vs Nunavut 0 (25-10, 25-18)
Alberta North 0 vs Yukon 2 (16-25, 13-25)
March 6
Alberta North 2 vs NWT 0 (25-22, 25-13)
Alberta North 2 vs Alaska 1 (23-25,25-12,15-3)
Alberta North 2 vs Greenland 0 (25-17,25-19)
March 7
Alberta North 2 vs Nunavut 0 (25-14,25-18)
Alberta North 0 vs Yukon 2 (19-25,15-25)
Alberta North 2 vs NWT 1(24-26,25-18,15-10)
March 8
Alberta North 0 vs Alaska 2 (23-25,18-25)
Alberta North 3 vs Alaska 0 (25-12,25-10,25-16) – SEMI FINAL
March 9
Alberta North 0 vs Yukon 3 (22-25,19-25, 20-25) – GOLD MEDAL MATCH
For more information contact Jim Plakas at jplakas@volleyballalberta.ca.
