SaskatchewanAn Indigenous athlete from Regina is one of two Saskatchewan softball players gearing up to play for Team Canada at the U18 Pan American Championship in Argentina. Regina’s Kian Poitras and Saskatoon’s Brett Slusar were both selected for the team.Regina’s Kian Poitras and Saskatoon’s Brett Slusar on their way to ArgentinaAliyah Marko-Omene · CBC News · Posted: Oct 02, 2025 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 7 hours agoFamily members were at the Regina International Airport on Wednesday to send off Kian Poitras, centre, who is will be playing with Team Canada at the U18 Pan American Championship in Argentina starting on Oct. 5. (Aliyah Marko-Omene/CBC)An Indigenous athlete from Regina is one of two Saskatchewan softball players gearing up to play for Team Canada at the U18 Pan American Championship in Argentina.Regina’s Kian Poitras and Saskatoon’s Brett Slusar were both selected for the team. Poitras, an 18-year-old member of Muscowpetung First Nation, spoke to CBC News from the Regina International Airport Wednesday before catching his flight to Toronto where he will meet the other players picked to represent Canada, before they continue on to Argentina. Poitras said he has received a lot of calls from friends and family who are excited about him making the team. “Growing up, I’ve had some role models that I looked up to and I know that feeling of being that little kid and looking up to someone and saying, ‘I want to be like them when I’m older,'” he said. “It’s a pretty special feeling.”Poitras said he used to watch his dad play baseball growing up and it didn’t take long before he knew he also wanted to pursue the sport. He said it has always been a goal of his to play for Team Canada. Poitras received the invitation to represent the team after his performance in the Canada Summer Games earlier this year. He was one of three Indigenous players selected. “I’m pretty nervous but also excited,” he said. “[I’ve been] training for this for the last couple of years, so I’ve been looking forward to it.”Brett Slusar from Saskatoon is one of two Saskatchewan athletes selected for Team Canada at the WBSC Americas U18 Pan American Championship that begins Oct. 5 in Argentina. (Softball Saskatchewan/Facebook)Poitras bid farewell to his mother, grandmother, father and brother, who all showed up to see him off Wednesday. The family plans to join him in Argentina Saturday, where they will stay until the end of the championship. “It means a lot for them to come and watch me, especially across the world. You know, it’s a good feeling that they want to come and support me and watch me while I play ball,” he said. ‘A healthy role model for Indigenous youth’Tara Whitecap said her son has had a love for sports since he was young. She recalled taking Poitras to his first softball game when he was only five days old. Eventually, Whitecap said her son started to play and it wasn’t long before he found himself participating in tournaments all over Canada and the United States, including the 2023 North American Indigenous Games in Halifax, where Poitras’s U16 team won the gold medal. After he graduated from the Martin Academy program at Martin Collegiate earlier this year, he went on to play AAA baseball with the Regina White Sox, where his team advanced to the 2025 Canadian Western Championships. Whitecap said it is hard to describe how she feels about her son making a national team. “I’ve watched him play ball his whole life, right?” she said. “It’s kind of a surprise, but it’s also something I thought he’d always reach because of how dedicated he is as a player.”Whitecap said she often reminds her son of the doors he has opened not only for himself, but for younger Indigenous athletes. “I think it’s a really big deal for him.” she said, “to be a healthy role model for Indigenous youth.” The 2025 WBSC (World Baseball Softball Confederation) Americas U18 Men’s Pan American Championship runs Oct. 5-11. The championship serves as a qualifier for the 2027 WBSC U18 Men’s Softball World Cup, with the top four teams advancing.ABOUT THE AUTHORAliyah Marko-Omene is a reporter for CBC Saskatchewan. She has previously worked for CBC and Toronto Star in Toronto. You can reach her at aliyah.marko@cbc.ca.
Indigenous teen 1 of 2 Sask. athletes selected for national U18 softball team
