Three KHS Students Competing in Greenland

Jay Barrett/KMXT

Three Kodiak High School Students are in Nuuk, Greenland, this week, competing in the Arctic Winter Games. (http://awg2016.org/en)

Krystal Fabricante and Shaun Walton will be competing as wrestlers and Art Alejandro will play on the Alaska boys volleyball team. The three appeared on the Derek Clarkston Show before they left for Greenland and shared their expectations.

“The culture, experience their culture (and) different cultures around the world, such as Russian, competing and meeting new people from around the world,” are what Alejandro said he was looking forward to. 

For Walton, it was, “competing and the different kinds of food I’ll be able to eat up there.” 

“The different cultures and the sports events, like especially the arctic sports, with the different cultures,” is what Fabricante said she is interested in. “Like there’s cross country skiing, biathlon, skating, hockey, and like you said, curling. And just any other events they provide, and allowing us to tour around the city.”

Alejandro, who has only had a few practices with other members of the Team Alaska volleyball squad, described a full schedule for the student’s visit to Greenland.

“So we’re there for eight days, I think. And we’ll be playing for at least seven days. Seven or eight days. For at least the first four days it will be pool play. So we’ve got to play each team,” he said. “There’s going to be nine team and we’re going to play each team twice or three times I believe. And then once they determine who has the most wins, they’ll separate it into brackets.”

This is Fabricante’s second trip to the Arctic Winter Games. Two years ago she wrestled at 52-kilos when the games were held in Fairbanks.

“This year I’m going to 55-kilograms,” she told host Derek Clarkston, adding she may wind up wrestling the same girl she did two years ago. 

“Oh, wow. You beat her, right?,” Clarkston said. “So she’s out for revenge.” 

“She probably is,” Fabricante said.

Nine circumpolar countries, or portions thereof, participate in the Arctic Winter Games, Including Northwest Territories, Nunavik, Nunavut, North Alberta, Northern Sami – or Lapland, and others.

The games wrap up with the closing ceremonies on Friday night.