PEISome Team P.E.I. athletes are back on the Island after taking part in the Canada Games, where their competition was complicated by wildfires raging in Newfoundland and Labrador.Island athletes talk about the ‘nerve-wracking’ conditions they competed inRyan McKellop · CBC News · Posted: Aug 18, 2025 6:24 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour agoHanna Sparks, 15, competed as a swimmer for Team P.E.I. at the 2025 Canada Summer Games in St. John’s. (Delaney Kelly/CBC)Some Team P.E.I. athletes are back on the Island after taking part in the Canada Games, where their competition was complicated by wildfires raging in Newfoundland and Labrador.Hanna Sparks, a 15-year-old swimmer, said as an athlete, she is especially mindful about protecting her lungs, so she and her teammates closely monitored the Air Quality Health Index throughout their participation in the games.She noted that while P.E.I. usually has very low index readings, during their time in St. John’s, the number sometimes climbed as high as four — a level considered a moderate health risk.”It was a big difference and I could, like, feel it in the air too,” Sparks told CBC News.She said the air felt heavy, and outdoors, the smoke was noticeable.”It was very scary, especially, like, checking in, you’re getting notifications and even when you would walk outside, you could smell the smoke in the air.”Sparks said the fires were a distraction while she tried to focus on her events.”Especially when you’re really trying to take in and enjoy everything, but also knowing that the forests are burning and so much bad things are happening around us, it was kind of hard.”Lung issuesSparks wasn’t the only athlete affected.Nate MacDonald, an 18-year-old soccer player, said the wildfires made him nervous about the games continuing.”[It was] pretty nerve-wracking, honestly, when they started cancelling and moving venues, it… got me scared that I was going to be sent home, miss soccer and all that.”Nate MacDonald, who played soccer for Team P.E.I. at the 2025 Canada Summer Games, had to visit a clinic due to smoke from the wildfires in the province. (Delaney Kelly/CBC)For MacDonald, the impact went beyond nerves.”I actually got pretty sick and had some, like, lung issues and couldn’t breath, but, yeah, [it] affected some people different,” he said.”I got it figured out, went to the polyclinic. They got a perfect setup over there and I’m all good now.”Despite the setback, he was still able to compete.”I wouldn’t give up playing a game for anything.”Both athletes said that in the end, the games were still a meaningful experience. Sparks said the friendships she made were her most memorable part.”I made so many new friends and just the whole [thing]… I made so many memories.”ABOUT THE AUTHORRyan McKellop is a graduate of the Holland College Journalism program and a web writer at CBC P.E.I.With files from Delaney Kelly
Team P.E.I. athletes recount competing at Canada Games amid wildfire smoke
