December 27, 2006 (Yellowknife, NWT) – Sport at the Olympic level is all about “guts and glory” — and that’s the title of a timely new book launched by Outcrop Publishers in Yellowknife. As the Olympic Winter Games continue in Turin, Guts and Glory: The Arctic Skiers Who Challenged the World recreates one of the most remarkable eras in Canadian Olympic history.

The book brings to life the amazing saga of Canada’s cross-country pioneers — the talented young Aboriginal racers from Inuvik, Northwest Territories, who skied to international glory in the late 1960s and 1970s. When these kids blazed their way to the Olympics, they set the stage for today’s Canadian stars.

At the Sapporo Games in 1972, five of the eight cross-country skiers on the Canadian team were Aboriginal teenagers from the Far North. Four more Inuvik skiers went to Innsbruck in 1976. Two of these Northerners, Sharon and Shirley Firth, competed for their country in a total of four Olympic Winter Games. While they never won Olympic medals, the twin threats from the Mackenzie Delta displayed such courage and skill against far more experienced competition that they cemented Canada’s rightful place among Nordic skiing nations.

And they sparked the careers of a new generation.

Among those who grew up with dreams of racing like the Firths is 2006 Olympian and World Cup medalist Beckie Scott. In her Foreword to Guts and Glory, Scott describes her awe the day she happened to meet Shirley Firth on a European ski trail. “For me, it was more than just a chance encounter with a celebrated Canadian Olympian. I felt a deep sense of connection to the history of ski racing in Canada, and to those who had gone before me. They are the founders, the fighters, the dreamers and the builders. Their contributions to skiing and sport in Canada were nothing short of momentous; their chapter in the vast, expansive volume of sport beginnings is distinguished and grand.”

Packed with photos, exciting action and colourful anecdotes, Guts and Glory was written by Sally Manning, herself a cross-country skier who has competed in three World Masters Championships. To research her book, Manning tirelessly tracked down archival records. Most importantly, she interviewed dozens of Inuvik skiers, organizers and coaches. But the narrative is rooted in the athletes’ point of view — it’s their own story, told most vividly in their own words.

Outcrop, The Northern Publishers, Yellowknife, 2006 – ISBN 0-919315-34-8. Guts and Glory, $25.95 (+shipping $2.62).

Please click here to purchase a copy.