A local athlete, sports advocate and former First Nation chief is being inducted into the North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame (NAIAHF).
Lara Mussell-Savage, of Sqwá First Nation, is among more than 70 people and teams announced this week in the hall of fame’s third class. The list includes 1980s Chehalis First Nation soccer player Terry Felix as well now-retired NHLer Jordin Tootoo.
Mussell-Savage is a two-time world champion in ultimate. She found success playing the sport in high school, college and club leagues. The Hall of Fame induction write-up noted that her “speed, agility, and disc-handling abilities quickly set her apart from her peers.”
Mussell-Savage was a captain and player-coach for University of British Columbia’s female varsity club team, helping lead them to three consecutive Canadian University Ultimate Championship victories in 1998, 1999, and 2000. The team also won several U.S. tournaments and was the only Canadian team to hold a number one ranking in the U.S. college circuit.
Mussell-Savage was also a long-standing member of Prime, Vancouver’s competitive club team, with whom she won three Canadian National Championships. On the international level, she was a member of Team Canada for four World Championships, earning two gold and two bronze medals. She served as co-captain for the Turku 2004 World Ultimate Championships where Canada went undefeated.
Mussell-Savage was recognized as the 2004 National Tom Longboat Award winner for female Indigenous athlete of the year for Canada and BC’s Indigenous athlete of the year in 2003 and 2004.
This is not her first induction into a hall of fame.
Prime was inducted into Canada’s Ultimate Hall of Fame in the team category, and the team is featured within the BC Sports Hall of Fame & Museum’s exhibit “In Her Footsteps: Celebrating BC Women in Sport.”
Locally, she was inducted into the Chilliwack Sports Hall of Fame in 2016 and she is also a featured athlete in the BC Sports Hall of Fame’s Indigenous Sport Gallery.
NAIAHF acknowledges all of the leadership Mussell Savage has taken on in the community, too.
“Her performance and influence go beyond her team,” the said. “She works to advance Indigenous sport and she promotes inclusivity and gender equity. She also gives back to her community having served on her Nation’s elected council for nearly 10 years and is the former chief of her community - Sqwá First Nation.”
She resides on Sqwá Reserve with her husband Kirk Savage, Ultimate World Champion and Canada Hall of Fame inductee, and their two children.
NAIAHF honors and recognizes the indigenous sport cultures of 27 countries of North America by recognizing outstanding leadership and achievement in individual and team athletics. By honoring and celebrating the empowered journey of the annually inducted individuals and teams, the hope is their stories may inspire future generations to follow their dreams in athletics and life. The second NAIAHF banquet will be held on March 16 in Green Bay, WI.
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