Lacrosse at the Olympics gives Indigenous communities a chance to see their sport shine

By EDDIE PELLS
AP National Writer

Nearly 1,000 years after lacrosse was first played on fields that could sometimes stretch for miles across the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, the sport will be on the Olympic schedule in Los Angeles in 2028. Whether members of the Haudenosaunee, a collection of six Indigenous nations whose territory covers upstate New York and adjacent sections of Canada, will play in that tournament is a question that will keep the lacrosse world on edge between now and then. For now, the International Olympic Committee has ruled out having the Haudenosaunee play as their own team, the way they have at past world championships and last year’s World Games. Players could still earn spots on teams representing the United States and Canada.