U of R Indigenous athletes reflect on culture and community
Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, recognizes the residential school Survivors, their families and communities, and the children who never returned home.
The University of Regina (U of R) has a wide range of athletes within the varsity programs stemming from many different cultural backgrounds, and the Carillon is highlighting some of the university’s Indigenous athletes for a second year in a row!
Ben Roulette: men’s hockey team
A new name around the Athletics Department this season is Ben Roulette, a first-year player on the Cougars men’s hockey team. Hailing from Rivers, Manitoba, Roulette is a member of Sandy Bay Ojibway First Nation.
Growing up, Roulette joined hockey at a young age before deciding to quit.
He said, “I ended up quitting for a year because I hated it. I wasn’t any good. I came back when I was five [and] played in Rivers. I had a great time. I actually got kind of good at it, and I think the biggest thing was just that I was with my buddies.”
Roulette later joined the Yellowhead Chiefs before moving into junior hockey with Waywayseecappo Wolverines, a Manitoba Junior Hockey League team based in the Waywayseecappo (Wayway) First Nation. He also represented Team Manitoba at the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships in 2022 and captained the team to a gold medal in 2023.
Roulette later spent the 2024-25 season with the Minnesota Wilderness before returning to Wayway for his final season of junior hockey for the 2025-26.
Playing junior hockey in a small Indigenous community holds a special place in Roulette’s heart.
“It was the perfect spot for me. It was just such a tight-knit community; it is bigger than you’d actually think it is. The support we got in the playoffs was huge. I’ve never seen that place that packed, so it was pretty cool to be a part of that,” Roulette reflected.
I didn’t really express it, but I think, as the years went on, I felt more comfortable as I am as a person. As I got more educated and learned more about my culture, I started to express it a little more. -Ben Roulette
Roulette also had family connections to the league, including his cousin and Wolverines teammate Jase Wareham.
Roulette reminisced, “I [have] played with Jase since I was five years old, and I think we’ve only spent one or two seasons apart. It was fun to just play with him and have that [connection], and our grandparents would come out, and his side of the family, my side of the family, it was just a really cool experience. I also got to play against Owen my first year of Junior. I remember he tried to fight me as a joke. It was cool to have that family-friendly competition.”
Family is a big part of Roulette’s identity. His father, Cecil, is the Indigenous Student Success Advisor at Assiniboine College in Brandon, Manitoba, and has been a major influence on Roulette.
“My dad, he’s been such a good role model to me. I think how calm and just collected he is really translates to me, especially going through adversity and stuff on the ice, as well as off the ice. He’s really helped me a lot with that, and he’s never been the dad to yell at me after a bad game or anything like that. He kind of just let me be a kid and [let me] enjoy playing,” Roulette added.
Growing up, Roulette was the only Indigenous kid on his teams.
“I didn’t really express it, but I think, as the years went on, I felt more comfortable as I
am as a person. As I got more educated and learned more about my culture, I started to express it a little more. Going to Wayway, my 17 year was big for me. We had a team elder, Jim. We got really close, and it kind of just made me, I guess, more comfortable in just being myself and kind of expressing that,” he reflected.
Roulette said that the culture head coach Trevor Keeper is building with
the Cougars program influenced his decision to come to the U of R. Keeper travelled to Wayway to meet with Roulette and discuss the program.
“Just learning from him, about his visions for the program and what
he wanted to kind of change, was a big reason why I chose to come here,” he added.
Juleah Duesing: Cougars track and field
Hailing from George Gordon First Nation, about an hour outside Regina, Juleah
Duesing is a third-year track and field athlete for the U of R Cougars. Duesing is a Bachelor of Science (BSc) student at the First Nations University of Canada (FNUniv).
Duesing was a multi-sport athlete through her schooling, competing
in track and playing volleyball. After graduating high school, she joined the Cougars track and field program. Now, Duesing is not only an athlete but also a coach to young Indigenous athletes.
Her mother, a track athlete herself, heavily influenced Duesing’s
pursuit of the sport. Duesing remembers finding her mother’s track trophies when she was in grade two and telling her that one day she would have just as many. She even included that statement in her Mother’s Day poem.
“The support system I had from my mom being a coach really helped, and from my
reserve supporting me in all of those meets. Once I turned 17, I graduated. I realized that, not that my journey was over as an athlete, but it was time to pay back all the support that was given to me back into the community, back into my reserve, my travel council,” Duesing reflected.
For Duesing, giving back has included addressing gaps in representation and access
within track and field.
Duesing became involved with Running Wild Athletics, an Indigenous track and field
club based in Saskatoon. Athletes do not need to be Indigenous to compete with the club, which works to expand access to the sport in isolated communities.
“I was approached by the founders of that club because, being a First Nations athlete
You can do this. You can be an athlete and also be a student at university especially because we have a unique opportunity here with the First Nations University attached. -Juleah Duesing
down south, they recognized the need for First Nations coaches down here because it’s not as common with them,” Duesing stated.
Duesing is of a mixed racial background, Indigenous on one side and German and
French on the other hand. Like Roulette, Duesing also navigated questions surrounding her Indigenous identity as a youth athlete.
Duesing had the opportunity to compete in the North American Indigenous Games as a
youth and later returned as a coach. She said that these games helped her develop into the person she is today.
Duesing reminisced, “What helped was when I went to these all Indigenous track meets
growing up. I wasn’t the only one. There was the variety of representation that I got to see, and that’s where the community piece started for me and building those relationships and connections with athletes from all over.”
Duesing draws inspiration from all Indigenous athletes across sports. Even when those
athletes are not always in the spotlight, she knows they are there and respects them deeply for what they have accomplished.
Athletes’ Circle
Duesing actively takes part in the U of R Indigenous Athletes’ Circle. Started by
Cougars women’s hockey alum Trinity Grove, the group provides a space for Indigenous athletes on campus to come together and support one another.
Duesing hopes the Athletes’ Circle can also encourage more Indigenous athletes to join
Cougars and Rams programs.
“The Indigenous representation here has been very little across all sports teams, and as
well as the recruitment hasn’t been what it could be to get our athletes from high school into university. Lots of the times the students don’t because there’s no representation. Maybe sports at a university level is something that they do not consider themselves being in,” said Duesing.
She added, “So, it’s always been important to me to be able to show, yeah, you can be
here. You can do this. You can be an athlete and also be a student at university especially because we have a unique opportunity here with the First Nations University attached. You can still pursue your cultural education, but also the student-athlete side of things.”
Roulette and Duesing are just two of the many Indigenous athletes whose experiences
show the role community and representation can play in sport. Through competing, coaching and building connections with other athletes, they are also helping to create spaces for the athletes who come after them.
Are you an Indigenous student-athlete? Want to be a part of the Indigenous Athletes’ Circle on Campus? Contact: Alison Fisher (alison.fisher@uregina.ca) or Keenan Cummings (keenan.cummings@uregina.ca).
