A 17-year-old Richmond girl is part of a B.C. lacrosse team of female athletes to the 2023 North American Indigenous Games next month.
The head coach of the BC U-19 Indigenous female box lacrosse team, Savanna Smith, attributes much of the team’s success to Adelle Larden, a Grade 11 Hugh Boyd student.
It will not be the first time Adelle is representing B.C. in an international competition.
She has represented B.C. in various international tournaments, including Best of the West Lacrosse Tournament in Las Vegas, which the team won in 2020.
Adelle’s performance on the field resulted in her receiving the Premier’s Award through the Indigenous Sport, Physical Activity and Recreation Council in both 2021 and 2022.
Now she is excited to meet and play with - and against - Indigenous athletes from all over North America at the Indigenous games in Halifax. There will be 5,000 athletes representing 756 Indigenous Nations from across the continent competing in 16 sports, including three traditional Indigenous sports.
“It’s going to be fun. I played against American teams, but I never got to play against other Canadian provinces,” Adelle told the Richmond News.
Lacrosse a family tradition
Adelle was born into an Indigenous family in Richmond that has a long tradition of playing lacrosse
It’s a sport invented and first played by Indigenous peoples that was named Canada’s national summer sport in 1994.
In fact, her grandfather helped build Steveston’s original lacrosse box near today’s Steveston Community Centre.
Adelle, along with her three older siblings, grew up watching her family play lacrosse and following it on TV. She started playing lacrosse at the age of five.
“Adelle has watched so much that she doesn’t think the way other people do on the floor,” said Scott Larden, Adelle’s father.
Adelle started playing lacrosse on a Richmond boys’ team - because there were no girls’ teams in Richmond - and then later joined a girls’ team in Vancouver where she played with older teammates.
Apart from her family’s influence and hard work, Adelle attributes her success in the sport to always being confident on the field.
“There’s a lot of people who play but they’re just so unsure of themselves, and so they make mistakes, because they don’t believe they can do it, or they don’t think that they’re useful,” said Adelle.
“But in my head, like my dad always said, there’s always someone bigger, better and faster, but you have to believe that you’re the best…and you have to have fun with it. That’s a big thing too.”
A sport with unique charm
For Adelle, lacrosse is a sport with unique charm and gives her a “adrenalin rush.”
Lacrosse has all the aspects of other sports, such as the need for hand-eye coordination, being aware of your surroundings.
“You’re always running, but you’re also worried about getting hit, so you have the physical aspect and the mental aspect,” she said.
“Afterwards when you relax, it’s just utter joy. When you’re taking off your gear and you’re sitting with your team, this is the happiest time of my day.”
Larden said all his children have benefited physically and mentally from playing sports.
“I think it’s way better for the kids as they grow up… sports are good to keep them out of trouble,” said Larden.
“It’s the commitment to the sport…there’s no problem with losing, you just always try to win every time you’re there and do your best. And they brought that attitude out there and outside the games.”
