Meet Courageous Use of Sport Award Winner Richard Palmer Thomas
March 31, 2023
For the past six years, Beyond Sport and WWE have partnered to celebrate incredible young leaders who are overcoming personal hardships to positively impact their communities through sport. Today, meet 16-year-old Richard Palmer Thomas, a 2022 recipient of the Courageous Use of Sport Award, presented by WWE.
“For me, the most rewarding work that I do in my community is bringing fun to kids that I’ve seen grow up through the years. I love watching them have an opportunity that others in our community don’t usually get and watch them learn and grow their soccer skills.”
Richard is Indigenous of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nation which is the unceded territory of Vancouver, Canada. Arising from colonization, Indigenous peoples in Canada have been subject to systemic and interpersonal racism for generations. Richard, his family and his community are still living with the direct consequences of colonization and are actively in the process of healing from historic traumas.
Growing up and while playing soccer with a local club, Richard had to endure many obstacles around racism and bullying, both from within his own community and outside. This judgment extended to his appearance and abilities in sport. However, with a strong personal understanding that words do not define him, Richard used the adversity to fuel his passion to work even harder to achieve his dreams. “The trauma I’ve experienced in life has served me to reflect and focus on what truly matters and has shaped me into the person I am today.”
Richard’s love for sport and soccer began in 2017 when he decided to join his sister at a summer camp run in partnership with Hope and Health, an organization that uses sport to engage, educate and empower indigenous youth locally and in other remote communities. After seeing the amazing coaches, all the fun the young people were having and more excitingly the opportunity to play soccer, Richard was eager to learn more. “I had the feeling I was at the right place, and I wanted to be a part of it because they were doing something great for people like me.”
He was then invited to the organization’s annual boot drive for Vancouver Whitecaps FC, which helps indigenous youth obtain cleats to play soccer. He continued to volunteer at Hope and Health and has been a youth ambassador and coach with them for nearly five years. Richard’s advocacy and successes as a soccer player have led him to become a strong role model in his community and others around him. He delivers weekend community camps and coaches young people through the sport - often traveling to remote parts of the country to do so - which he believes fosters inclusion and acceptance.
“When you join a team, you’re joining a community. As a team, you’re creating a bond where collectively you bring each other up. Soccer is very diverse and as a result teams of different cultures work together to achieve success. Whether it’s a big team like Liverpool FC (Richard is a diehard LFC fan) or your local summer league, soccer has the ability to combat racism and foster acceptance.”
Richard shared that the trauma he faced growing up as a racialized Indigenous individual and being able to relate to the vulnerability and challenges that Indigenous youth face, has shaped him into the coach he is today. He takes immense pride in supporting young people to push their limits and educates them on the importance of respect and equality through soccer. But ultimately, the most rewarding aspect of his work is making an impact on his community and having fun with the local kids, as well as watching them learn and grow their soccer skills.
Taking his mum’s advice of bullies never being able to gain anything from saying negative things about people, Richard was inspired to shut out the adverse comments and advises others to do the same. “I’ve been bullied numerous times and what I would say to people in the same situation is don’t spend all your time focusing on negative people because they don’t want to see success. Focus on the people who want to see you succeed, who will drive a hundred miles to see you reach the finish line. Always be appreciative of the people who support you.”
Richard is the backup goalie for the upcoming summer North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) and is excited at the opportunity to represent his province. “I’m also excited because I’m playing with my friends who I grew up playing with or against. This opportunity has been life-changing and I’ve been taking my training a lot more seriously. I just can’t wait to be there and win or lose I know I'll have an amazing time.”
While at NAIG, Richard is planning on amplifying and raising awareness of the event and the positive impact it has on Indigenous communities by filming a video mini-series and documentary. Building on his passion for YouTube and being a presenter, his ‘The Road to NAIG’ project will record Hope and Health and NAIG players to showcase their skills and what sport means to Indigenous youth.
“My road to NAIG project was an idea that I had because, with soccer in Canada, Indigenous youth don’t have the exposure that they deserve. So, I decided that I would do a documentary on one of the biggest Indigenous-led events. I just want to show mainstream sports that Indigenous youth are equally, or more skillful, and deserve the exposure or opportunities that other youth get...One spoiler that I can say is that we’ve commissioned an Indigenous song to be made for the documentary named “the Salish journey” by an amazing local artist, so stay tuned!”
Richard describes the Courageous Use of Sport Award presented by WWE as his biggest accomplishment and achievement. “If you would've told me a year ago that I would be winning an award I would say that you're pulling my leg or joking with me. Growing up I haven’t won very many awards or ever thought I was enough to win awards... This award means a lot. Ever since I was young, I have strived for excellence. I’ve always tried to do my best in school, in sports and in my community. To me, it means that you’re going in the right direction and to keep pushing because you’re not done yet, they’ll be bigger achievements to come.”
Off the pitch, Richard’s goal is to attend the University of British Columbia to study Kinesiology. He also values significant time connecting with his culture through dancing and learning his traditional language.
Congratulations Richard!