Nevaeh Pine is enjoying life as a first year Algoma University student and athlete.
Studying in a Law and Justice and Political Science double major program, Pine is also a member of Algoma’s women’s wrestling team.
Born and raised in Garden River First Nation, Pine wrestled for White Pines Collegiate before competing at the postsecondary level.
As a Grade 11 student Pine won a gold medal in her weight class at the Ontario Federation of Schools Athletic Association (OFSAA) championship tournament in Ottawa in March 2023.
“OFSAA was a great experience. It definitely led me into athletics at Algoma,” Pine told SooToday.
Prior athletic activity and family members inspired Pine to get into wrestling.
“When I was younger I trained at Steel City MMA and we did wrestling in those classes. My brother Malcolm did high school wrestling so I knew I would wrestle in high school just because of that. It just works for me.”
As of Jan. 15, 2025 the Algoma Thunderbirds women’s wrestling team reached an impressive milestone, being ranked eighth overall in Canada in the latest USports national rankings. Pine is currently ranked fifth in the 76kg division.
“Competitions for Algoma are super. It’s great to travel almost every weekend to tournaments. The team is like a family and so welcoming. Wrestling at this level is completely different from what it was like in high school. There’s a lot more technique but because of the support of my teammates and my great coaches they’ve made it super easy. My head coach Trevor Manchester and the other coaches are super nice,” Pine said.
Training is intensive.
Pine and her teammates practice five nights a week.
“I train hard to get to where I want to go. To be able to go on those mats each weekend I take notes from each match I’ve had and see what I can do better and what I can change and work on those points."
Pine and her Algoma University wrestling teammates will be travelling to London to compete at the Western Open Sunday, Jan. 26.
The team is pumped that Algoma University will be hosting the annual Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Wrestling Championships on Saturday, Feb. 8 at the George Leach Centre.
“It’ll be super exciting to have it here because we travel almost every weekend,” Pine said, looking forward to having family and friends cheer her on.
“When I'm on the mat I feel my opponent pushing against me but I listen for my coach and figure out what leg I need to grab and where I need to go. It always feels good to win.”
Pine said there is a respect between Algoma University wrestlers and those from opposing teams.
“We shake hands at each competition but a lot of times we’ll also pat each other on the back and say ‘that was a good match.’ We’re just people at the end of the day. It’s just a sport that we partake in.”
Pine said that wrestling has taught her a lot about personal discipline.
“It’s taught me more about what being driven really means and what it means to be dedicated. When you’re pinned on the mat and somebody’s laying on top of your back and holding you there it’s so hard to fight out of there but you get out of it and it teaches you ‘keep fighting, keep going.’”
Pine intends to apply that fighting spirit to her career.
“One day I hope to attend law school and become a human rights lawyer,” said Pine, known and respected as a passionate Indigenous affairs activist.
Pine won first place for a speech drawing attention to the tragedy of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) in a provincial public speaking competition hosted by the Royal Canadian Legion in Niagara Falls in 2019.
Pine earned second place in Speaker’s Idol, a national speech contest hosted by the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre for Holocaust Studies. Her speech centred on the Every Child Matters movement, which gained national attention after ground-penetrating radar found what are believed to be the remains of 215 children at the site of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.
As a Grade 10 student Pine organized an event at White Pines to recognize the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirited People (MMIWG2S).
That event included drummers, speakers and the placing of MMIWG2S signage on display along Trunk Road.
Pine appeared in a 2024 episode of Warrior Up!, a documentary series highlighting young Indigenous change makers across Canada and the U.S. shown on the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network.
A film crew followed Pine through her preparation for Speaker’s Idol and her raising of awareness for MMIWG2S.
Pine also served as the Algoma District School Board’s Indigenous student trustee during the 2022-23 school year.
In 2024, Pine received a Village Media Community Builders Award for Young Leader.
“My interest in Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls started when I was 12. I did a lot of research on that topic before I wrote that first speech. I watched countless documentaries, read countless articles, found social media posts. I wanted to spread awareness about such a cruel topic. I wanted to educate people about it because it’s not spoken about every day when it should be because it’s been happening as part of the history of Canada.”
Pine said it’s gratifying to play a role in raising awareness of such serious social issues.
“My main goal is to inspire others and have everybody use their voice in speaking out against these issues. Being featured at speaking competitions and being heard by people who haven’t heard those things is impactful. It hits close to home for me because I’m a young Indigenous woman. I’ve done my research. I’ve educated myself and I want others to know about these issues. People come up to me in tears. I’ve had family members of women I’ve mentioned at my speeches come up to me at these events.”
Though much still needs to be done in achieving Truth and Reconciliation, is Pine encouraged by greater awareness of Indigenous affairs in Canada?
“100 per cent. I believe every little thing is building up to the equality we’re fighting for. We care about these issues and we want to see that change and put our voices together until that happens. People at Algoma University are taking classes to educate themselves about the land that they live on.”
Looking forward to the day she becomes a lawyer, Pine said she’ll fight for victims in Indigenous and non-Indigenous human rights cases.
Does she describe herself as a champion for the underdog?
“Yes,” Pine said with a smile.
- With files from James Hopkin, SooToday.