General Greater Edmonton Lacrosse Council Information

The Greater Edmonton Lacrosse Council (GELC) is responsible for the administration of lacrosse programs for Edmonton and it's surrounding areas. The GELC consists of a Board of Directors, committees, a full time administrative assistant and a summer student, and, of course, many volunteers. There are 8 box lacrosse organizations within the GELC: South Edmonton Warriors, St. Albert Rams, West Edmonton Blues, North Edmonton Wizards, Sherwood Park Titans, and Fort Saskatchewan Rebels,Leduc Crush and Westlock Rock.. This may soon grow to include teams from,Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, and Whitecourt. member of our organization. These clubs provide minor box lacrosse through our organization.

The GELC also has the following ' adult' clubs as members, the Edmonton Miners,Edmonton Eclipse, the Outlaws and the Northern Alberta Major Lacrosse  Assn.
As well the Edmonton Field Lacrosse Association sponsors field lacrosse in the area.

The GELC's lacrosse teams consist of over 1500 players for both box and field lacrosse, and is still growing.

All four disciplines of lacrosse are played in the Edmonton area under the governing body of the Greater Edmonton Lacrosse Council (GELC). Box lacrosse is played in a 'box' or an arena once the ice is removed following the hockey season. Field lacrosse is the most popular internationally recognized lacrosse game. Both men's and women's field lacrosse games are played in Edmonton, each being very different from the other. A simplified version of lacrosse, known as interlacrosse is also offered in the provincial school curriculum. This has proven to be wildly popular among elementary aged children.

Children have their first opportunity to play box lacrosse at age 4 in the Mini-Tyke program with divisions for all subsequent ages and into adulthood. After the midget division, players may choose to try out for the Edmonton Miners of the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League or play in a Junior tier 2 or tier 1 program. An adult drop-in program was started in 2000 for those individuals who have not played in years,or those who have never played and are wanting to give it a try. Girls and ladies box lacrosse are currently being developed.

Lacrosse is Canada's official National Summer Sport. In Alberta, grade five students learn about baggataway, the native Indian game of the gods. What originally began as a native Indian game caught the attention of the French and the English. It was the first organized sport in Canada to be played by both native Indians and the white Europeans, hence, until 1994, it was unofficially known as Canada's national sport.Two schools of thought exist regarding how lacrosse was named. Some believe it became known among the white people as 'lacrosse' because the shape of the stick is similar to 'the crosse' or stick found in the familiar European game of field hockey (American Indian Lacrosse, T. Vennum, Jr.). Others believe it received its name because the stick looked like a bishop's cross or crozier.

The first all white team played lacrosse in 1842 as part of the Montreal Olympic Athletic Club. In 1994, lacrosse became Canada's official summer sport at the same time that hockey was acknowledged as our official winter sport.

We look forward to an exciting future for all disciplines of lacrosse in the new millenium.