Hundreds of athletes gather this weekend to begin the wrap up of fall seasonal sports for the Saskatchewan High School Athletics Association (SHSAA). Once again, those athletes will be sporting an emblem of recognition for Canada’s veterans thanks to the Royal Canadian Legion and leadership with the SHSAA. 

Provincial student athletes will be wearing poppy decals on their uniforms over the weekend of November 5-6. Around 2900 student athletes representing 160 volleyball teams in 30 tournaments and 20 football teams in ten semi-final playdowns will wear the emblems. 

“This has happened for three or four years in a row with the help of the SHSAA,” says Chad Wagner, executive director of the Royal Canadian Legion, Saskatchewan Command. “They’ve really taken this as a great initiative each year. “It’s not just athletes that will be wearing them, but it’s coaches and officials as well. It’s wonderful to see everyone paying tribute to our men and women who’ve served our country.”

The poppy patches came about when the Legion and the SHSAA sought a way to honour veterans at weekend sporting events near Remembrance Day on November 11. The emblems emblazoning uniforms are a way of offering that recognition without intruding on sporting events and their own protocols, says Wagner. He also points out that it’s an important year for that recognition.

“The poppy was brought in as a symbol of remembrance 100 years ago, eventually brought in through an act of parliament, and now is the national symbol of remembrance that we see today. 

In the Humboldt area, key sporting events this weekend include the 2A six-a side football semi-finals in Wakaw and a host of junior and senior volleyball events. Watch for the poppy patch this weekend when you cheer on your team.