About

The President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition (Council) aims to promote healthy eating and physical activity for all people, regardless of background or ability. The Biden-Harris Administration’s Council recognizes the importance of sports as a medium to bring together people of different backgrounds, to uplift different cultures, and to improve health and wellbeing. Traditional stick games have deep roots in Native traditions and cultures that carry through to the present day. The Council, along with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, the National Park Service Office of Public Health, the National Fitness Foundation, and lacrosse leaders from across the country, is planning to host an event to honor the commitment to sharing America's first games, first foods, and the meaningful intersection of cultural traditions, food, and health through outreach and collaboration.

This one-day event is designed to share the basic foundational principles of lacrosse: respect, strength, endurance, teamwork, and (most importantly at the core of the sport) inclusivity for all. Our goal is to provide an exciting and educational opportunity for the public to appreciate the importance of maintaining vital Native traditions through a lens of the contemporary Indigenous experience and highlight the ways in which culture and identity manifest in a rapidly changing world. For generations lacrosse has become and been viewed by outsiders as a game of East Coast elites and Ivy League communities. This event will bring lacrosse and other traditional stick games back to their roots, bringing together partner organizations from local independent D.C. youth lacrosse organizations to national lacrosse organizations focused on spreading the principles of the game into a multitude of urban and diverse communities.
 

Lacrosse has truly grown into a global game originating right here where we sit today. The National Lacrosse League and Premier Lacrosse League are in the company of being the fastest growing professional sports leagues in the United States, showing the support, inclusion, and interest of all demographics is alive and well.

To top it off, in late 2023 the International Olympic Committee accepted lacrosse into the Olympic games for the 2028 summer games in Los Angeles. On December 6, 2023, President Biden formally announced his support for the lacrosse team from the Haudenosaunee Confederacy to compete under their own independent flag, even as they reside within the borders of the United States.

This event will have representation from Tribal communities throughout the United States as well as global connections with contemporary social players and professional athletes who will teach the game through skills clinics and connect through conversation. Included and intimately connected to our approach is both fitness and nutrition. In addition to focusing on the fitness benefits of the game, the event will incorporate health and nutrition education, including sharing Indigenous based meal ingredients and ways to lead a healthy lifestyle. With the support of the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, we endeavor to demonstrate the meaningful intersection of food and food security, sport, and nutrition, as well as the importance these have on maintaining vital Native cultural traditions and the impact on the health of Native communities.

This is truly and will always be a community free event for all to attend, including invited participants and members of the public visiting the National Mall during the event. All varieties of sticks and equipment will be available throughout the event, including men's, women's, and youth sizes. The event aims to showcase how education, health, fitness, nutrition, global personal inclusion, and fun can be interconnected through sport.

We feel strongly that this event would be beneficial on the National Mall as a stark and striking image of America’s first game, from America's First People. It stands as a gift not only from Native people, but the American people, who have loved and shared it to a global community.
 

Tribal Food Security, Nutrition, and Physical Activity Resource Hub 

As an adjunct to the One Lacrosse Gathering Celebration, a Tribal Resource Hub highlighting federal resources designed to address food insecurity, advance food sovereignty, and promote physical activity within tribal communities was created. The Tribal Resource Hub offers resources for anyone who works to support the health and well-being of tribal communities — including public health professionals, community health educators, tribal community leaders, researchers, school administrators, and child and elder care providers.

Organizing Partners

President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition
The President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition (PCSFN) is a federal advisory committee that aims to promote healthy eating and physical activity for all people, regardless of background or ability.  Learn more.
 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH)
OASH oversees the Department's key public health offices and programs, a number of Presidential and Secretarial advisory committees, 10 regional health offices across the nation, and the Office of the Surgeon General and the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.  Learn more.

National Park Service Office of Public Health
The National Park Service Office of Public Health (OPH) is a national activity headquartered in Washington, DC. Functioning as an internal health department, OPH provides agency specific capabilities for parks on a range of new and evolving public health issues through Health Protection and Disease Prevention.  Learn more.

National Fitness Foundation
The National Fitness Foundation is the only congressionally chartered nonprofit focused on health and fitness. The Foundation develops public and private partnerships to help expand youth physical activity in America.  It is the official charity of the President's Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition.  Learn more.

One Lacrosse Gathering Coalition