More than a game: How UBCO’s Tennyson McCarthy’s experience at the North American Indigenous Games
Tennyson McCarthy has always felt at home at UBC Okanagan.
The second-year forward with the Heat women’s basketball team grew up just minutes away in Lake Country, B.C., and was no stranger to the hardwood at UBCO. She played in the Junior Heat program from Grade 5 and trained under current head coach Bobby Mitchell long before donning the Heat jersey at the varsity level.
“I kind of felt like I was already a part of the program,” McCarthy said.
“It was easy for me to know what kind of program I was committing to.”
While the familiarity of the campus, team and community played a big role in her university decision, McCarthy’s experience at UBCO has extended far beyond basketball. It’s where she’s deepened her Métis identity, pursued a degree in Indigenous Studies, and solidified her dreams of practicing Indigenous law.
And it’s also where she reflects on a very special event: the 2023 North American Indigenous Games (NAIG).
“Honestly, I could say, hands down, the best experience of my life,” McCarthy said of the tournament held in Halifax.
“It wasn’t even really about the basketball for me.”
Representing Team B.C., McCarthy joined hundreds of Indigenous athletes from across the continent for a weeklong celebration of sport, culture and community. From canoe and kayak to soccer and basketball, the Games resembled a mini-Olympics, but with a powerful cultural heartbeat that made the impact lasting.
“Being in that kind of space with Indigenous people and being able to experience different Indigenous cultures aside from my own, and also be entrenched in my own culture, it was really, really special,” she said.
“It was an eye-opening experience.”
McCarthy says she enjoyed visiting the East Coast for the first time and learning about the differences in Indigenous culture between Atlantic and Western Canada.
“It kind of reignited the passion for me,” she said.
“It made me even more committed to doing all I can for reconciliation.”
McCarthy hopes to pursue law at the University of Victoria — home to the country’s only dual juris doctorate in Canadian and Indigenous law — with a focus on land claims and policy reform.
Her interest in Indigenous rights is rooted in her family’s story. While her grandmother once had to hide her heritage, times have changed and conversations once considered taboo are now central to McCarthy’s identity.
“My grandma can now be more open about it and share things that she wouldn’t normally want to share,” she said.
“I recently found out she spoke Michif as a child, which was really surprising and empowering to hear.”
That sense of reconnection was only amplified by her time at the Games, where she met new teammates, built new friendships, and found community on a national scale.
“I got to play with girls that I’d never played with before and be on a team with people I’d never met,” she said.
“That hasn’t happened in a while, because I’ve grown up playing with the same girls.”
While McCarthy has now aged out of the U19 competition bracket, she hopes to one day play another role at the Indigenous Games.
“I would love to be a coach if they would have me back,” she said.
“I’d love to still be able to go and support other athletes.”
Back in Kelowna, McCarthy has taken on roles like serving on UBCO’s Indigenous Youth Advisory Council and continuing to foster a close bond with her teammates.
“The girls on my team are kind of the only ones that know what anyone else on the team is going through,” she said.
“They’re the first line of defense for me when I need support.”
And while McCarthy continues to work toward her academic and athletic goals, she encourages young Indigenous athletes to chase the same opportunities that shaped her.
“If you can go to NAIG, I would really, really encourage you to try and pursue that,” she said.
“It’s a great experience, and you can get recruited there too. People are watching.”