< Back Henry Boucha Henry Boucha Ojibwe Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2022 While growing up in Warroad, Minnesota, Henry Boucha played on the 1964 Bantam State Championship team, was all-conference in football, baseball, and hockey and was three-time All-State in hockey. Boucha graduated in 1969 from Warroad High School. The Warroad Warriors were runner-up at 1969 Minnesota Boys State Hockey Tournament. He signed with the Winnipeg Jets of the WCHL after high school. As an 18-year old, Boucha was chosen to represent the USA in the 1970 World Championships in Bucharest, Romania. In 1970, he was drafted in the US Army during the Vietnam War. He served two years in the Army while playing with the 1971 US World Championship Team and competing in the 1971 World Championships in Bern and Geneva Switzerland. In 1971 the Detroit Red Wings drafted him 16th overall. Still in the service he also played for the US Olympic Team in 1972 in Sapporo, Japan winning a silver medal. Boucha was the first draft choice of the Minnesota Fighting Saints in the new World Hockey Association just after the Olympics. He signed with the Detroit Red Wings in the 1971-72 season and played the last 16 games with Detroit. In 1973, he scored the fastest goal at the start of the game against the Montreal Canadians. Boucha was traded to the Minnesota North Stars in the summer of 1974. He suffered a major eye injury on January 4, 1975 when Dave Forbes of the Boston Bruins hit him with his stick resulting in a devastating and career ending eye injury. Boucha retired in 1977 as a 25-year-old. He returned to Warroad in the mid 80’s to raise his family. Henry coached youth hockey, was Indian Education Director at Warroad Public Schools, and was a realtor. He is the CEO of Boucha Films, LLC, and CEO of Boucha Films LTD, Canada. Boucha Films is currently in pre-production on the movie based on his book he authored called “Henry Boucha, Ojibwa-Native American Olympian”. <Back

< Back Dr. Joseph “Bud” Sahmaunt Dr. Joseph “Bud” Sahmaunt Kiowa Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete/Administrator 2026 Dr. Joseph “Bud” Sahmaunt left an indelible imprint on Oklahoma City University athletics as a basketball player and later athletic director. Sahmaunt earned most valuable player in the All-College Tournament in 1958 while playing basketball for OCU. After transferring from Cameron (Okla.), Sahmaunt became a member of the OCU basketball team from 1958-60. OCU won the 1958 All-College Tournament and participated in the 1959 National Invitational Tournament. In July 1987, Sahmaunt was named athletic director for OCU and served the university for 13 years as such. Before being named athletic director, Sahmaunt served as professor of education and associate dean of education. During Sahmaunt’s tenure as athletic director, OCU captured 15 NAIA national championships. OCU won national titles in women’s basketball in 1988, 1999 and 2000, men’s basketball in 1991, 1992, 1994 and 1996, men’s tennis in 1998, 1999 and 2000 and softball in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 and 2000. Sahmaunt hired OCU baseball coach Denney Crabaugh, men’s golf coach Kyle Blaser and softball coach Phil McSpadden. Each led OCU to NAIA championships in their sport. Jim Abbott, who later became OCU athletic director, worked under Sahmaunt from 1991-94 as director of athletic development and promotions. Sahmaunt is a member of OCU’s 1960 graduating class as well as a member of the OCU Athletics Hall of Fame. Sahmaunt was inducted into the hall of fame in November 1981 while working for the university as the dean of an OCU program that linked higher education institutions with the local Native American communities. He is also a member of the Kiowa Nation Hall of Fame, the American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame and was a member of The Oklahoman’s 1950’s all-star basketball team. <Back

< Back Frederick George Sasakamoose Frederick George Sasakamoose Plains Cree (nêhiyawak) Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2023 Frederick Sasakamoose was born at Whitefish Lake to a traditional Cree family. As a child, Fred developed a strong bond with his Grandfather. It was during this time that Fred was introduced to hockey by the elderly Sasakamoose. At seven years old, Fred, along with his brother were forcefully removed from their family and taken into the Residential School System. Subjected to the constant of traumatic abuse, Fred found light in recreational sport when a French-Canadian priest encouraged the young boy to take up hockey. It was during his introductory career with his Residential School Hockey team, the St. Michael’s Ducks that Fred shined as a player. After his departure from St. Michael’s in 1949, Fred would be recruited by the junior ice hockey team, the Moose Jaw Canucks. After an impressive 31 goal season in the 1953-54 regular season, Fred’s talents were called upon by the Chicago Blackhawks where Sasakamoose would become the First Treaty Indian to play in the National Hockey League. Sasakamoose’s NHL career lasted only eleven games, before loneliness for his homeland struck. He would continue playing for the minor leagues in Western Canada, until finally returning home in 1962 and over twenty years since he was forcefully removed by authorities. Fred lived a life in shadow of his experiences at Residential School; both alcohol and anger shackled him for many decades. In 1981, Fred became Chief of his band and sobriety of alcohol followed soon. Rather than resenting the past, Fred took the future and became a leader for Indigenous youth. He was a stern advocate for reconciliation and Indigenous sport, and in 2017, headed the inaugural Chief Thunderstick Hockey Tournament; the largest Indigenous hockey event in North America. For his work towards reconciliation and efforts in supporting Indigenous youth, Fred was awarded the Order of Canada in 2018. Fred passed away on November 24th, 2020. Photograph #1, Profile (Fred as an elderly man): Photograph of Fred Sasakamoose, September 16th, 2020. Credit: Battlefords Agency Tribal Chiefs Photograph #2, Action (Fred as a young man): Photograph of Fred Sasakamoose, as a Chicago Blackhawks player. Credit: Sasakamoose family <Back

< Back Kyle Ḵaayák’w Worl Kyle Ḵaayák’w Worl Tlingit, Deg Hit’an Athabascan and Yup'ik Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2022 Kyle Ḵaayák’w Worl is an award-winning Arctic Sports athlete and coach currently residing in Juneau, Alaska. Worl is Tlingit of the Lukaax̱.ádi clan, Deg Hit’an Athabascan and Yup'ik. Over his 13 year career in the sport he has won over 100 medals, traveling through Alaska, Canada and Greenland to participate in various competitions. He is credited for spurring a renaissance in Arctic Sports in southeast Alaska as the first coach for Juneau in over 25 years to bring a team to the Native Youth Olympics in 2018. Along with training and coaching year-round in Alaska, Worl travels across the world to share Arctic Sports, including the Riddu Riddu Festival in Norway, Orenda Art International Gallery in Paris, and Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. Currently, Worl works with the Central Council Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska as the Wellness Coordinator, overseeing a region-wide Traditional Games program. A few of his accolades include being featured in October 2019 Men’s Health Magazine; 2018 & 2019 NYO Games Alaska Healthy Coach Award; 2021, 2018, 2017 & 2016 World Eskimo Indian Olympics Outstanding Athlete Award. Arctic Sports are a collection of Indigenous games based on hunting and survival skills of the north. The games trained both physical and mental abilities that allowed the indigenous people of Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Chukotka to thrive in the Arctic for millennia. Today athletes from across the Arctic and beyond carry on the tradition of the games in events such as Native Youth Olympics, World Eskimo-Indian Olympic, and Arctic Winter Games. Photos: Nobu Koch, Sealaska Heritage and Greg Lincoln, Delta Discovery. <Back

Tim Moccasin Cree Induction Category: Year Inducted Trainer 2025 <Back Tim Moccasin is a professional jockey from the Saulteaux First Nation in Saskatchewan. Tim’s passion for horses started at a young age; spending much of his time with friends and family riding and working with horses. At the age of 12, Tim was already competing as a jockey in bush meets throughout Saskatchewan. Tim started his professional racing career in 1994, at the age of 16, at Marquis Downs in Saskatoon. He obtained his first professional win that year on a horse named Moneytree Muncher. Tim went on to win multiple leading jockey awards at Marquis Downs. The majority of his career was spent in Saskatoon but has also raced at tracks inManitoba and Alberta. During his career as a professional jockey Tim competed in both thoroughbred and quarter horse racing. Tim has 3,349 thoroughbred starts with 624 wins, 518 seconds, and 463 thirds. Tim has 283 Quarter horse starts with 58 wins, 48 seconds, and 53 thirds. In his 2001 season at Marquis Downs Tim set, and continues to hold, the North American record for the most consecutive wins with 14 wins. Tim rides a little less professionally but continues to dedicate a large part of his life to horses. In recent years Tim has competed in Indian Relay racing with its growing popularity in Saskatchewan. He enjoys interacting with the younger generation of riders giving them advice so they can become more confident and safer riders. The next step in his thoroughbred racing career is to become more involved in the training aspect of racing. Tim continues to reside in Saskatchewan with his wife and during the off-season he enjoys being with his children and watching them participate in sports such as hockey and volleyball.

< Back Jesse Cockney Jesse Cockney Inuit Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2023 Jesse Cockney is an Inuit cross-country skier from Yellowknife, NWT. Jesse competed at the 2014 and 2018 Winter Olympics and raced the internationally for Canada on the World Cup circuit from 2011-2018. Jesse’s career highlights include nine National championships, four top-10 finishes at the World Cup and the overall NorAm champion for 2012-2013. Jesse retired from the Canadian ski team in 2018 and began coaching junior athletes with his local ski club, Foothills Nordic in Calgary, AB. Jesse began studying kinesiology at the University of Calgary in 2018 and graduated with distinction in 2022. Jesse is currently working towards a master’s degree at the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary. Jesse shares his passion for sport and healthy lifestyles with youth through Classroom Champions. Classroom Champions pairs Olympians with classrooms in Canada and the United States to share lessons on goal setting, community and resiliency among others. Photos: Jesse coaching Foothills Nordic Ski Club in 2019. (Credit: Doug Stephen) Jesse winning the 2019 NorAm skate sprint in Canmore, AB. (Credit: Doug Stephen) <Back

< Back Michael G. Robinson Michael G. Robinson White Earth Ojibwe Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2023 Michael G Robinson grew up in Cass Lake, Minnesota, on the Leech Lake Indian Reservation. He is Anishinaabe, and an enrolled member of the White Earth Nation. Sports have always been important to Michael. In junior high school, Michael discovered boxing. By the age of 16, he won the Regional Golden Glove Championship, along with the Best Boxer award. In his teens his family moved to Tacoma, Washington and he continued fighting. He represented the Tacoma Boxing team regionally and in the Seattle Golden Gloves. Michael returned to Minnesota, boxing for Minneapolis South Central Gym and Leech Lake. In his career Michael had 152 fights. He won the Regional Golden Gloves tournament eight times, eight Minnesota State Indian Boxing Tournaments and the 1981 and 1984 National Indian Boxing Championships. Michael has been a coach, judge, and promoter of boxing. In both the amateur and professional ranks, Michael has been a positive role model for fighters throughout the Midwestern United States. Michael has always been a positive mentor, giving freely of himself, for benefit of his community. This includes his knowledge of traditional wild rice harvesting. Every fall, he freely passes on what he knows to the next generation of ricers. His devotion to Indian Country public safety paralleled his fighting career. He has been an officer in Mescalero, New Mexico, Red Lake, White Earth and finally, at home for the Leech Lake. Michael recently retired from Law Enforcement after serving for 32 years. <Back

< Back Edison Eskeets Edison Eskeets Navajo Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete/Builder 2023 Edison Eskeets is an enrolled member of the Navajo Tribal Nation. He attended and received diplomas from Haskell Indian Junior College, Kansas, and Bradley University, Illinois. A First Team All-American Runner, invested in Native traditional education composed with the mainstream educational school system at large. Edison taught at the Orme School, an international school, and the Native American Preparatory School serving in the following capacities: Chair of the Fine Arts, Teaching the Arts and Humanities, Coaching Track & Field and Cross Country, Academic Dean, Associate Head of School, Head of School. In addition, he served as the Executive Director on behalf of Wings of America, serving Native youth programs throughout Indian Country. Edison made every effort in making a difference within Native communities and went beyond boundaries: fundraising, grant writing, lectures, presentation of Native Arts, collaborating programs with colleges/communities, and seeking funds from government, foundations, corporations, individual donors, state funds, and tribal funds. It is vital to maintain the goodness of all indigenous societies including culture, language, ceremonies, food, and underscoring the history of the Americas, from Chile to Alaska. At one time, there were over 80 million indigenous population in the Americas and today’s count is almost 6 million. Therefore, Education, Athletics, Native programs, Higher Education, Funds, and Leadership must be nurtured. His final employment was under the Hubbell Trading Post at Ganado, Arizona operated by the Western National Parks Association. He is the first Navajo trader to manage the Hubbell Trading Post, the oldest continuously operating trading post on the Navajo reservation. This environment included education of Native arts: metal smithing, rug weaving, wood carving, painting, pottery, leather works, and trading items with fellow customers. Currently, he is promoting a new book titled “Send a Runner,” a book illustrating the history of the southwest embodied with Native traditional ultra-running. Photo Credits: Joseph Kayne and Fairfield Half Marathon (CT) <Back

< Back Charley Norris Charley Norris Red Lake Band of Ojibwe Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2026 Charley Norris was a five-time Pro Wrestling America (PWA) Heavyweight Champion. He was also a two-time PWA Tag Team Champion once with Sam Houston and the other with Derrick Dukes. He and Dukes were known as “Thunderblood” and they were the final champions since the title was later retired. He was a one-time Northern Premier Wrestling (NPW) Heavyweight Champion. Norris also was a Wrestle America 2000 Tag Team Champion. Pro Wrestling Illustrated ranked Norris #90 out of 500 wrestlers in 1993. He made his World Championship Wrestling (WCW) televised debut in 1993 and was a fan favorite while defeating Fury. He had a pay-per-view debut at the Fall Brawl event and defeated Big Sky. In 1996 Norris joined the American Wrestling Federation (AWF) and teamed with Tito Santana. He appeared in several independent cards for the next decade up to his retirement in 2006. He moved home to Red Lake, MN at that time. Additional details on Norris’ wrestling career is available on Wikipedia and matches are on YouTube. <Back

< Back Martin F. Wheelock Martin F. Wheelock Oneida Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2022 Martin Frederick Wheelock was born in Oneida, WI, in 1874 and attended Carlisle Indian School in Carlisle, PA, from 1890-1902 where he became a varsity letterman on the legendary Carlisle Indians football team for years 1894-1902. The Indians played against all the major teams in the East and some in the Midwest. In 1899, with Wheelock as Captain, the team received an invitation to play the University of California in San Francisco on Christmas Day for the "East-West Championship". The California team had just finished an undefeated season and had been un-scored upon. Following an adventurous train trip across the country, the Indians defeated California by a score of 2-0 in a tough game fought on a slow, sandy field. Wheelock played guard and tackle during his career, was the leading kicker many years, and finished as center in 1902. Despite bouts of pleurisy, he is reported to have played football for one season at Haskell Institute in Kansas after leaving Carlisle. Following the end of his football career, Wheelock returned home to Oneida, WI, where he married a former Carlisle student, had a family, farmed, and used his extensive education (for the times) to help interpret important matters. He died in 1937. Honors and recognition Wheelock received include: Carlisle Indians Team Captain, 1899 and 1901; Second Team All-American in 1901; All-University Team in 1902 by the Sports Department of the Philadelphia Inquirer; named by Glenn Warner as his choice for left guard on his all-time Carlisle line-up, and frequent mention in the school newspaper, "The Indian Helper". When Wheelock spent time at home in Wisconsin, he was recruited to play one season for the Green Bay football team (before they were the Packers). Wheelock, along with other Oneida football players who played for the Green Bay town team, is featured on a Walk of Legends statue outside Lambeau Field. In 1980, Martin Frederick Wheelock was inducted into the American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame at Haskell Indian Junior College in Lawrence, Kansas. <Back

Iroquois Nationals U19 World Lacrosse Games Category Team Tribes Iroquois Confederacy Year Inducted 2022 In the summer of 1999, the Iroquois Nationals participated in the U19 World Lacrosse Games in Adelaide, Australia. It was a privilege to represent our community, Akwesasne, as well as the Iroquois Nationals on the world platform playing Tewa’a:raton or lacrosse. Drew Bucktooth, Delby Powless and myself were co-captains and it was a great honor not only to help lead the incredible talent that was comprised of our team, but to also stand alongside players who I have incredible respect for on the lacrosse field. As young men, this was the first time for many of us to be able to participate in playing the game we love, the gift from the Creator, on the international level. That year we brought home the bronze, and a big component of that was the amazing coaching staff from some of the greatest in the game, along with the natural talent that the team was comprised of. This is evident as many of the players from that team went on to have successful and long careers in lacrosse on a professional level. While in Australia, we were truly overwhelmed at the amount of support we received from many of the teams across the world, but particularly the Australian Aboriginal community. This is just a prime example of how lacrosse can truly unify people; regardless if it is between neighbors playing the game together or people who live on opposite sides of the world and have entirely different cultures. I am forever thankful for my experience that I had participating in the games and the lifelong friendships that were forged. Nia:wen to all that continue to support our young Onkwehonwe lacrosse players. I am so proud of how much the game has grown and the amazing talent that is on display from our people. I am confident that one day the Iroquois Nationals will bring home the gold to our people and the entire world will recognize the original creators of the medicine game. -written by Freeman Bucktooth Home 2027 Banquet 2027 Banquet Sponsorship About Inductee Search Provincial Nominees Contact More

Builders 7G Foundation Bennae Calac Denise Waterman Ernie Stevens Jr. Pauma Band of Luiseño Indians Oneida Oneida Oren Lyons Onondaga Sam McCracken Sioux and Assiniboine Wilton Littlechild Cree