Table Tennis North is proud to congratulate Akiko Iwase, who has been selected as the Team Northwest Territories Table tennis coach for the 2027 Canada Winter Games in Québec City.
For Akiko, the Canada Games will be another step in a coaching journey that has already taken her to three Arctic Winter Games and a Canadian Table Tennis Championships. Now, she will have the opportunity to lead Northern athletes at one of the biggest stages available to young athletes in the Northwest Territories.
The 2027 Canada Winter Games will take place from February 27 to March 14, 2027, as the Games return to Québec City 60 years after the first Canada Games were held there in 1967. Table tennis is one of 22 sports and disciplines included in the 2027 program.
A Love for the Game and for Young Athletes
When asked why she accepted the opportunity to become a Canada Games coach, Akiko’s answer was simple. It starts with her love of Table Tennis and the people who play it.
She enjoys playing the sport with people of all ages, but coaching also gives her an opportunity to watch young athletes challenge themselves, do their best and enjoy the sport that has become such an important part of her own life.
That connection between performance and enjoyment is something Akiko hopes to carry with her to Québec City.
Showing Canada That the North Is Here
For Akiko, wearing Team NT colours also carries a much bigger meaning. Canada has only three territories, and she believes opportunities like the Canada Games matter because they allow Northern athletes to show the rest of the country what is happening above the 60th parallel.
Some Northwest Territories Table Tennis athletes are already competing nationally, and Akiko wants people across Canada to recognize that. Her message is a simple but important one: the North is here, and our athletes belong on the national stage.
The Canada Games provide exactly that opportunity. Thousands of athletes, coaches and managers from provinces and territories across the country come together to represent their respective teams at Canada’s largest amateur multi-sport event.
Setting the Next Goal
This will be Akiko’s first Canada Games, and she admits she does not entirely know what to expect. But she already has a goal.
She would love to see a Team NT athlete win matches. Most importantly, she wants the team to build upon what Northwest Territories athletes accomplished at previous Games and take another step forward.
For a small territory, those steps matter. Every match, every set and every opportunity to compete against some of Canada’s best young table tennis athletes helps build the sport back home.
Akiko will bring considerable multi-sport Games experience with her, but Québec City represents something new. It is another opportunity to learn, another opportunity to lead, and another opportunity to show what athletes and coaches from the Northwest Territories can do.
Congratulations, Akiko. We cannot wait to see you wearing Team NT colours in Québec City!