< Back Analyss Benally Analyss Benally Navajo Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2025 Analyss Benally was born and raised on the Navajo reservation in Shiprock, New Mexico. She is an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation. Her parents are Brian and Vikki Benally. She has one sibling, Patience Benally. Benally attended Wichita Heights High School in Wichita, Kansas. During her time at Wichita Heights HS, she was a four-year varsity player and scored over 1,000 points in her high school career. Analyss was named three-time Wichita Eagle All-City League, three-time Wichita Eagle All-Class 5A, Sports in Kansas Class 5A Honoree and 2016 Navajo Times All-Star. When it came time to choose a college Analyss chose NCAA Division I San Jose State University (SJSU). At SJSU she became one of the top three point shooters in the Mountain West Conference. She set the SJSU sophomore three point field goals made in a season record. She scored a career high 31 points against San Diego State University. Despite missing numerous games due to injuries in her freshman and senior years, she finished in the top ten in school history with three point field goals made, three point field goal percentage, and three point field goal attempts. Analyss graduated from San Jose State University in 2021. Analyss played professionally in Europe since 2021. Her rookie year team was in Romania with CSM Alexandria. She moved the following year to play in Albania with Flamurtari winning the Albanian-Kosovo Liga United Cup, Albanian Super Cup, Albanian Cup, and was Albanian League Champions. She was named Eurobasket.com All-Albanian League and Eurobasket.com All-Liga Unike for the season. Her next team was Bashkimi in Kosovo. She went on to win the Kosovo Cup, Albanian-Kosovo Liga United Cup. Her team were Kosovo League Regular Season Champions, Kosovo League Champions, Liga Unike Regular Season Champions. During the off season, Analyss resides in New Mexico where she hosts free basketball camps and participates in speaking engagements to tell her story in hopes of inspiring, encouraging and uplifting native youth to never stop working toward their dreams. Additionally, Analyss made her acting debut in the 2024 Netflix movie Rez Ball directed by Sydney Freeland and produced by LeBron James. <Back

< Back Gaylord Powless Gaylord Powless Mohawk, Wolf Clan Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2024 Gaylord Powless was a Mohawk lacrosse player from the Six Nations of the Grand River First Nations Reserve, Ontario, Canada where he was the eldest of 14 children born to Ross and Wilma Powless. Powless received his first lacrosse stick at age two and by age 17, he won the Tom Longboat Award as the best Indigenous athlete in Canada. In 1964, Gaylord was recruited by the Oshawa Green Gaels junior lacrosse team, by coach Jim Bishop to which he led to four consecutive Minto Cups from 1964 to 1967 and was chosen as the most valuable player in the series in 1964 and 1967. Powless turned professional in 1968 and, in 1969, played for the Rochester Chiefs, winning the Can-Am Lacrosse League title. He went on to a successful career in professional and senior amateur lacrosse with teams in Detroit, Syracuse, New York, Montreal, Brantford, Port Coquitlam, and Brampton as well as with the Six Nations team. Powless was also a star player for the Detroit Olympics of the National Lacrosse Association. He scored 63 goals in the 1968 season, twice as many as his nearest competition. He knew where everyone was at all times on the field of play, was an unselfish player, and an outstanding playmaker. Powless's career was cut short by injuries and in 1977, he retired at the age of 30. He had to withstand tremendous racism from coaches, players, fans, and sports writers. His reaction was to recognize that he was a target for bullying and abuse and to overcome it by being the best player, and the highest scoring athlete he could be. Sadly, Powless lost his battle with cancer on July 28, 2001, but his influence as a role model and inspiration to generations of Indigenous youth carries on. He left behind his wife Patti, daughters Michelle and Gaylene, and son Christopher (deceased 2015) who he coached in lacrosse to his Jr. career. His grandchildren Taylor, David, Kahner, Rachel and Kali continue his legacy through their love of sports, they would have been his greatest accomplishment. <Back

< Back Paul Chartrand Paul Chartrand Metis Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete/Official/Team 2024 Paul Chartrand began to play baseball and amateur senior hockey after high school. In 1974 after a decade of teaching he moved to Queensland, Australia. After playing ice hockey at the ToomBul hockey rink near the Brisbane Schools, he co-founded a new local team, the Moreton Bay Sharks. Being an ice hockey referee in Canada, he turned to officiating. In 1978, he was Referee for the Goodall Cup national men's competition. In 1981 he was appointed national Referee-In-Chief in the NIHL although the league ended in its second season. When he first arrived in Brisbane in September of 1974 he was coming off a 6-2 pitching record for the neighboring provincial Calgary Giants. The right-hander played for championship teams including provincial teams in national competitions, including the first Canada Summer Games in 1969. In his first season in 1974-75 playing for the local Athletics team in the Brisbane Major Baseball League, he had a 15-3 record with a 1.51 ERA. He later pitched for the Queensland State Team and the Australian National Team during the 1974-82 seasons. He led Queensland with two wins in a Tri-State series in 1974 at Sydney. He also pitched a record 20-strikeout no-hitter on October 21, 1979 against the Ipswich Musketeers. Named to two Australian national teams in ice hockey and baseball, Chartrand returned to Canada to teach and practice law in 1982. He continued to compete in both sports, winning a national bronze medal with the Saskatoon Liners in 1983 and later retiring at 49 years of age. In ice hockey, he played four seasons with the Sagkeeng Old-Timers team, competing successfully in national and in Old-Timers World Cup competitions in Nice, Munich, Paris and elsewhere. Following his return to Canada in 1982, he pursued an academic career focused on the law and policy of states respecting indigenous people. He completed a Master of Laws degree at the University of Saskatchewan and took on university appointments in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States. Author of over fifty publications, he served on several high-profile public bodies, including Canada's Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, Manitoba's Aboriginal Justice Implementation Commission, and the Aboriginal Healing Foundation. <Back

Matt Roberson Wichita/Keechi Induction Category: Year Inducted Builder 2023 <Back Matt Roberson is the Executive Director for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Department of Athletic Regulation. Matt also serves as the Executive Officer and Region 6 Director for the North American Indigenous Games Council, as well as, serving as a Management Representative for Quivera Enterprises, Wichita Tribal Enterprises, Wichita Government Solutions and Iscani Industries. Matt is an enrolled member of the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes (Keechi) and is originally from Anadarko, Oklahoma. Previously, Matt was elected to the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes Executive Committee and served as Southern Plains Regional Vice-President Alternate for the National Congress of American Indians. Matt was elected to two terms as President of The Association of Combative Sports Commissions. While under his leadership, The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Department of Athletic Regulation was recognized as the 2017 Organization of The Year by the Minnesota Boxing Hall of Fame. The Department of Athletic Regulation, also organized and hosted the First Annual “Meeting of The Clans” an All-Indigenous Amateur Boxing World Championship in 2022. In 2017, Matt received The National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development’s prestigious “40 under 40 Award." In 2018, Matt was selected as an American Express NGEN Fellow and in 2022 completed Converge Social Justice Leadership fellowship through the American Express Leadership Academy.

< Back Kalley Armstrong Kalley Armstrong Algonquin (Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg) Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2023 Kalley Armstrong is the granddaughter of Toronto Maple Leafs legend George Armstrong. Kalley played four years of NCAA Division 1 hockey with the Harvard University Women’s Hockey Team between 2010 and 2015. Kalley grew up idolizing the hockey careers of both her grandfather and her father. She played her junior hockey with the Toronto Aeros hockey club. In her final year as captain, the team won the Provincial Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) and the Ontario Women’s Hockey Association (OWHA) championships. She also competed that year at the National Women’s U18 Championships for Team Ontario. With the Harvard Crimson, Kalley was selected to the All-Ivy League Second Team and named the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Best Defensive Forward. In her senior year, she captained of one of the best teams in Harvard Women’s Hockey history. The Crimson captured the 2015 Ivy League Championship, the 2015 ECAC Season Championship, the 2015 ECAC Tournament Championship, and the 2015 Beanpot Championship. That year the team finished as the 2015 Frozen Four National Championship Runner-Up. In 2019, Kalley started her own hockey school, Armstrong Hockey, in honour of her grandfather’s legacy and accomplishments as a proud Indigenous athlete. Armstrong Hockey is dedicated to the development of Indigenous youth hockey and the mentorship of First Nations girls. Kalley is currently working on her PhD at Western University focussing on the experience of girls playing hockey in residential school. <Back

< Back Joey Christjohn Joey Christjohn Oneida Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2024 Joey Christjohn is an Oneida tribal member in Wisconsin. He started his boxing career as an amateur with his first bout in 1974 in Fond du Lac, WI at the local YMCA. His last bout as a professional was against Carlos DeLeon in Milwaukee, WI in 1993. Christjohn had 92 amateur fights with a record of 68 wins and 24 losses. He was a three-time Wisconsin Golden Gloves Champion. Christjohn was also the 1980 National Indian Athletic Association light heavyweight champion and recorded a knockout in 27 seconds. His pro debut was on Halloween in 1985 and he had 41 bouts in his career winning 19, losing 19, and had 3 draws. His pro career took him throughout the country including Carson City, NV, Milwaukee, WI, and Chicago, IL as well as overseas in Poland and France. One of his notable fights was defeating Oliver McCall in 1985. McCall would eventually win the 1994 WBC heavyweight championship of the world. Christjohn’s sparring partners included Greg Powless, Leander Danforth Jr., Ron Melchert, Kelly Stevens, Ernie Stevens Jr., Tim Tomashek, and Dennis Danforth Sr. <Back

< Back Miguel Lara Miguel Lara Tarahumara Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2024 Miguel Lara’s record as an ultramarathon runner is very impressive and has resulted in him winning recognition across the globe. He has finished first in more than 20 ultramarathons, including three times each at Ultramarathon Caballo Blanco Copper Canyon, Ultramaratón de las Canones and the Born to Run Series. He participated in the Boston Marathon in 2017, won the Ultra X Mexico in 2019. He won four races in 2016 including the Red Rock and Beyond 50 miles in 6:43.23, Wild Wild West Ultra 50k in 4:32.22, the Born to Run Ultra 60k in 8:13.06, and the Kodiak Ultra 100 miles in 19:58.00. Photo/Bio Credit: Ultra X <Back

Chamisa Goodwin Ojibwe Induction Category: Year Inducted Trainer 2025 <Back Chamisa Goodwin is a member of the White Earth Nation Ojibwe whose life journey reflected resilience, talent, and a strong connection to her cultural heritage. An exceptional athlete in high school, she competed with the regional Wings of the Great Lakes as a part of the Wings of America Youth Development Running Project in the USAT&F National Cross Country Running Championships for three consecutive years, showcasing remarkable endurance and determination. At Bemidji High School (MN), Chamisa earned the Most Valuable Player award in soccer and excelled in track, demonstrating her versatility and drive to succeed in multiple disciplines. Her early accomplishments set the stage for a groundbreaking career in professional sports. Following her passion for speed and precision, Chamisa pursued a career as a professional jockey. Over the years, she rode 99 winners, earning over $2 million for the horses she piloted. Her success on the track took her to some of the most prestigious venues in horse racing, including Pimlico Race Course, Oaklawn Park, and Tampa Bay Downs. Known for her courage, determination, and sharp instincts, Chamisa became a respected figure in the racing community, inspiring others— especially young Native Americans—to chase their dreams in sports and beyond. Today, Chamisa continues to make an impact, transitioning from the racetrack to her current role as an Extension Assistant at Leech Lake Tribal College. In this capacity, she works to support agricultural, environmental, and community development initiatives, fostering sustainability and cultural preservation within the tribal community. Her work reflects her commitment to empowering others and ensuring a strong future for her people. Chamisa's life story is one of perseverance, adaptability, and giving back. From excelling as a high school athlete to achieving remarkable milestones in professional horse racing, and now contributing to her community through education and extension work, she has consistently embraced challenges and opportunities. Chamisa serves as a role model, inspiring others to follow their passions, overcome obstacles, and remain deeply connected to their roots while pursuing their dreams.

< Back Ron Larsen Ron Larsen Oneida Nation Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2026 Ron Larsen is a member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin. He started running in 1978 at age 24 on the roads and streets of Oneida. In the early 1980's he ran marathons but after starting a family and a rehabilitation counseling firm it was recreationally. At age 50 in the early 2000's Ron started competing at the master then veteran masters (60+) level. Since 2003, Ron has participated in over 100 distance races. He has completed 65 road and trail marathons and half marathons; and events 10 to 35 miles. In addition, he has completed solo runs rim to rim at the Grand Canyon (3), Hilltop to Colorado River on the Havasupai reservation; and other events 4-12 hours duration, and track laps 100+. Highlights include certified marathon (26.2 mile) races that met the Boston Marathon qualifying standard in 27 of 28 attempts. He ran Boston Marathons in 2004, 2014, 2024 and will again in 2026. Ron has had 24 age group 1st place wins in road marathons and half marathons. At age 64, Ron was 1st overall at 3 of a Kind Half Marathon and at age 66 he was 3rd overall at the Golden Nights Half Marathon and 3rd place overall at the 2016 Valley of Fire Marathon in Nevada. Special races in Indian Country include the Paatuwaqatsi Water is Life 50k (1st place 60y) on the Hopi Reservation; Canyon De Chelly 55k (3rd 60y) Chinle Az; Navajo Code Talker 29k (1st age 60-65); Shiprock Marathon (1st 60-65). He ran trail marathons 2009-10 in Death Valley; (1st and 2nd place at 55y/o age group) and in 2022 at the Oneida New York Homelands, Great New York State Marathon (1st age group 65). Since age 70 in 2023, Ron has run four marathons; Boston, Mesa, Las Vegas and Green Bay and six half marathons; winning his age group in eight of 10 races. He credits success to a natural holistic diet, training more not less, having a strong heart, mind and spirit. He plans to continue running and to inspire others that running is a life time sport and with dedication to a healthy life and training one can achieve many goals as a senior athlete. Photo: Marathon Foto <Back

< Back Phillip Raweriio Barreiro Phillip Raweriio Barreiro Mohawk Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2024 Thomas and Phillip Barreiro are multi-time Canadian Greco-Roman Wrestling National champions. They strive to be good role models for young people on the Akwesasne Reservation. As experienced coaches, they have logged many years and countless hours working with the younger generation in their community. They are both passionate about the sport and have a lot of love for the culture that raised them to be who they are today. They emphasize the importance for young people to develop mindful values and personal discipline. This is critical in order to help Akwesasne youth achieve a healthy lifestyle, not just for themselves but for the community as well. Phillip Barreiro has a passion for the sport of wrestling and mentoring young people, He began wrestling in eighth grade at the age of 14. While in high school, Barreiro was a New York State place winner and two-time 2006 and 2008 North American Indigenous Games Champion. Barreiro attended NCAA Division 1 American University from 2009-2013. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree from American University in 2013 and went to work as a Court Administrator for Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe for eight years. During that time, he became a three-time Canadian National Champion in Greco-Roman Wrestling. Barreiro also spent a year as an assistant coach for NCAA D1 Binghamton University and he is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu purple belt. He recently started, alongside his brother Thomas, a non-profit youth development program titled GOOD MIND GRAPPLING. The program uses the sport of wrestling, and related grappling disciplines, to promote physical literacy and combat intergeneration trauma in indigenous youth. <Back

< Back Jon Gray Jon Gray Cherokee Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2024 Jon Gray played a key role in the Texas Rangers' early-season success and into the World Series in 2023, both on the field and behind the scenes. His gentle and soft-spoken demeanor belies the quiet leadership and accountability that he brings to the Texas clubhouse. Through June 8, 2023, Gray ranked among American League leaders in ERA (5th, 2.32), opponent batting average (5th, .201), WHIP (6th, 0.964), and wins (T9th, 6). Over a span of six starts this season from May 8-June 7, Gray produced a stretch in which he went 5-1 with a 0.84 ERA (4 ER/43.0 IP), with his only loss in that span coming in a complete-game 1-0 Rangers defeat on June 7 vs. St. Louis. He had a span of 17 consecutive scoreless innings from May 8-20, the longest scoreless stretch of his career, and recorded his 1000th career strikeout on April 26 at Cincinnati. He began a start on May 13 at Oakland with 6.2 hitless innings, the longest no-hit bid by a Texas starter in over five years. During game three of the 2023 World Series against the Diamondbacks, Gray was brought in at a crucial time and pitched three scoreless innings in a victory out of the bullpen. He only had one hit and had five strike outs in 30 pitches earning the win as the Rangers were up two games to one in the World Series going into game four. In 2022, Gray began the #MissionGraywWolf22 program hosting military groups to three Texas Rangers home games. In addition, he and his wife Jacklyn hosted a Toy Drive in December 2022 to collect toys for Mission Arlington/Mission Metroplex and secured over 900 toys that benefitted over 16,000 families. The December 2023 Toy Drive was another success. This past season, Gray hosted twelve #MissionGrayWolf22 nights for military families across the Texas community. Gray was named the Texas Rangers 2023 Lou Gehrig and Bob Feller Act of Valor nominee and is on the Board of the Taylor Hooton Foundation. <Back

< Back Alicia Guerrero Alicia Guerrero Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2025 Alicia Guerrero is an enrolled member of the Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation who has grown up and attended school on the Yakama Reservation. Guerrero lost her left leg in 2005 at the age of two years old. Beginning her Para Athletics career in 2018, she broke multiple Washington State records as a high school freshman and has since competed nationally in the F64 category for shot put and discus. Guerrero competed in wheelchair basketball and throwing events at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign before transferring to San Diego State University in 2024 to fully dedicate herself to her competitive throwing career. Beyond the field, Guerrero is passionate about education, with aspirations to become an elementary school teacher serving Native American communities. Guerrero’s drive stems from a commitment to representation—both for disabled athletes and strong Indigenous women. She proudly incorporates her heritage into her competitions, wearing beaded earrings and bold, creative makeup as a testament to the spaces where Indigenous excellence belongs. Guerrero was named to the 2022 National team for shot put. In 2023, she made her international debut at the Para Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, earning her first international medal: bronze in the F64 discus throw. When not competing, Guerrero channels her creativity into beading jewelry, spending time withher dogs and birds, and finds peace by the ocean. <Back