Labrador City claims top prize as 2026 Labrador Winter Games draw to a close

A week of competition has drawn to a close, with Labrador City winning the Labrador Cup at the 2026 Labrador Winter Games.

It's the top prize given to the team that collected the most points during each event through the week.

"It feels amazing. We didn't think we were even going to be able pull a team together, but we made it happen, we're here, we're super proud of everyone," said Victoria Gatehouse, who is a gold medalist as part of Labrador City's ball hockey team.

"It's just a blur right now. We need to process it when we get home."

Kenneth Muise of Labrador City also took home some individual hardware. Muise was selected as the event's most outstanding male athlete for Labrador West and the most outstanding male athlete for the overall Games.

"It's been great. It's been an awesome week. This is my first games, so I really enjoyed the whole week," Muise said.

"The amount of effort that goes into the Games is phenomenal and it's stuff that you don't see."

Meanwhile, Games director Craig Wallace can finally exhale.

He said it's been 14 months of preparation, and the closing ceremony is the culmination of that effort.

Along with Wallace were over 300 volunteers who made sure each event went off without a hitch.

"It's somewhat surreal, how quickly it's actually gone. It's been a blast," Wallace said.

"It's so full on, you know? Like there's so many activities, so many events taking place throughout the journey of the week. There's no down time, there's no dead time. So there's always something happening and you don't have time to reflect on what you've just done."

With adrenaline pumping throughout the E J Broomfield Arena Saturday night, most athletes were taking the time to capture the moment.

Phones were out, videos and pictures captured, as each community team prepared to say goodbye to the 2026 Games and head home to their lives.