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Edward Lennie, the man known as the “Father of Northern Games” for his role in promoting traditional Inuit sports, is being honoured with a new commemorative stamp from Canada Post.
The stamp, part of a special three-stamp issue released under the postal service’s Indigenous Leaders series, will be officially released on Indigenous People’s Day.
Lennie’s son, Hans, told CBC’s Midday Cafe he was “very humbled and honoured … my father is being recognized for all his hard work.”
Born in 1934 near Inuvik, N.W.T., Lennie was forced to attend residential school as a child, and became familiar with Arctic games only after returning to his family at age 11.
“He had to remember himself,” Hans said. “It only happened when they gathered, because the people back then were still nomadic.”
Hans Lennie with a poster of his dad, Edward Lennie. Edward was posthumously inducted into the Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 2022. (Submitted by Hans Lennie)
In 1960, noticing that the games were being forgotten, Lennie began hosting local youth at his house for friendly competitions in traditional games like high kick, kneel jump, and the high-endurance airplane.
WATCH | Learn about Arctic sports at the 2026 Arctic Winter Games:
Learn about Arctic sports at the 2026 Arctic Winter Games
Arctic sports are a big part of the Arctic Winter Games. There are 10 in total, and on Day 3 of the 2026 Games in Yukon, athletes from across the North competed in three of them: kneel jump, one-hand Reach and two-foot high kick. CBC Kids News breaks down what these sports are all about, and their cultural origins.
“They used to throw me onto their back,” Hans laughed. “‘Now you’ve got some weight,’” Hans remembered he would tell them.
At the first Arctic Winter Games in 1970, Lennie pushed for the inclusion of traditional sports alongside settler games like badminton and basketball.
“He was a bit puzzled that the games that they were having weren’t really about the Arctic,” Hans explained.
Lennie coached generations of players to excellence in the ten competitive Arctic events at the games, and supervised the exhibition of others like the blanket toss.
Lennie was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 2022.
A photo of Edward Lennie in 1971 receiving an award at the World Eskimo-Indian Olympic Games in Fairbanks, Alaska. (Inuvialuit Digital Library)
Hans said Lennie’s mentorship helped dozens of youth mature into respected leaders in their own right.
“Now to this day they come up and shake my hand, thanking me for my dad’s efforts,” he said. “Now, they’re respected people in their communities. And that’s just such a blessing.”
Hans said Lennie would be proud to see the way Arctic sports continue to attract youth today.
“That tradition has been passed on,” he said. “That’s really what my dad was all about — ensuring the games stayed alive.”
WATCH | Learn more about Edward Lennie’s story:
Did you know that the Arctic Winter Games almost didn’t have Arctic Sports? | 2026 Arctic Winter Games
When the Arctic Winter Games were first announced in 1969, no Arctic Sports were on the roster. This caught the attention of a young Edward Lennie, an Inuvialuit man who lobbied with his elders to have traditional Northern Games be included. CBC Sports spoke with his son to hear the story of how he did it.
