He survived the sinking of a fishing boat and kept two of his fellow crew members alive by holding onto them in frigid water and 50-foot seas for three hours until the Coast Guard arrived. For 55 years the Gold Medal Tournament has been about more than the universal lessons of sport and life any fan can recognize. Community leaders credit it with lowering the suicide rate of young men, teaching respect for Alaska's native peoples and building relationships between natives and non-natives. This year a Romanian and an African-American were given Tlingit names and adopted by the community whose team they played on, the Tenakee Tribe. Albert Kookesh says the tournament, that now includes a womens' division, has gone a step beyond race.
Basketball teams are a source of community pride.
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