Last week professional curling teams around the world were dealt a major blow when Sportsnet announced the postponement of the Grand Slam of Curling Season until April 2021.
The news all but conformed what many had feared; the COVID-19 pandemic will significantly impact the 2020-21 curling season. While Curling Canada has yet to cancel 2020 Home Hardware Canada Cup late November, there is now a very good chance the Canadian season won’t officially get underway until provincial play downs begin in the new year.
The cancellation of the first four events of the Grand Slam season has many implications, not only will elite teams be unable to play competitive draws for the next several months, but they will also be unable to compete for the large sums of cash that are made available at the slams.
The cancelation of these events could also prevent teams from meeting some of their sponsorship requirements. When companies sign-on to back curling teams, they are doing so in part because of the television and media exposure that is made available to teams competing at the sport’s highest level. With these events now canceled, these sponsors have lost out on at least four weekends of national television exposure.
Given the fact that curling is still thought of as an amateur sport, at least where the ability for athletes to make a living competing at the highest level is concerned, teams rely on these events to generate much of their necessary funds. With the amount of prize-money up for grabs this season now significantly reduced, teams will have to work even herder to secure the funds necessary to mount a competitive season.
Despite the fact that this sort of announcement is exactly what teams and organizers were hoping to avoid, it was the right decision. Given the global nature of competitive curling, there was no way Sportsnet could pull these events off in time, amidst a global pandemic.
While teams do face a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the upcoming season, there are still options for teams to stay in-shape and competitive during this extended off-season.
As provinces and other jurisdictions begin to loosen some of the restrictions that have been put in place over the last few months, curling clubs and other athletic facilities are beginning to open up. As organizations like Curling Canada start to publish return-to play strategies, it will become much easier for teams to train and compete during the pandemic.
Given the fact that many curling clubs often have a number of elite teams as members, rinks will be able to train alongside some of their regular tour competitors. While the competitiveness of these rinks will vary, teams shouldn’t have to go too far to find decent opponents.
There may also be opportunities for rinks to compete in smaller cash-spells around the country this fall. A number of World Curling Tour events are still on the schedule for the fall and winter months. While it is impossible to predict where we will be in regards to COVID come October, if the spread of the virus continues to slow,, is is possible that some of the more “open” provinces would welcome such events.
While the World Curling Tour events don’t often feature as competitive of fields as the Slams do, nor do they have as much prize money, these events would definitely be welcomed by the country’s elite teams.
Given the current rules associated with travel into Canada, it is unlike that international teams would be able to come and compete in these events, unless significant improvement is seen in regards to the pandemic, or if event organizers are able to receive exemptions from the federal and provincial health authorities.
Another important thing to consider is the fact that Sportsnet’s announcement is likely not the last. The uncertainties surrounding COVID-19 that additional cancellations are always possible. Until a vaccine is found, the status of the 2020-21 curling season is largely unknown, leaving the world’s top teams in limbo with less than 20 months left before the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
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