World Eskimo Indian Olympics

The World Eskimo-Indian Olympics (or WEIO) is an annual multi-sport event held over a four-day period in July or August, designed to preserve cultural practices and traditional (survival skills) essential to life in circumpolar areas of the world. The WEIO features games or sports rooted in ancestral hunting and survival techniques employed by the Inuit, Iñupiat, Yupik, and other Native Americans, as well as dance storytelling competitions, and an annual cultural pageant, that focuses on cultural knowledge.

In 1961, the WEIO (formerly World Eskimo Olympics), held its inaugural event held on the banks of the Chena River, Fairbanks, Alaska, as part of the Golden Days celebration festivities. The event was sponsored by the City of Fairbanks, through the city's Chamber of Commerce.

In 1970, sponsorship of the event was transferred to Tundra Times (a statewide newspaper in Alaska), and several revisions were made. This includes the name change — which inserted "Indian" to better reflect the ethnicity of the participants — and the introduction of events for women. The first decade of the events featured male-only participants; eventually, the number of events which women competing increased. Women now participate in some of the more arduous events, including ear pulls and high kicks.

Six years later, the WEIO reorganized as a 501(c) non-profit organization, which took over sponsorship from the newspaper, and has been responsible for plans, preparations, and stagings related to the event.

After four and a half decades of hosting the WEIO in Fairbanks, the games were relocated to Anchorage, Alaska in 2007 following a successful bid to host the event. WEIO board members were concerned that Fairbanks officials were becoming complacent, and elected to examine other venues.

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