Due to the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic, Curling Canada announced today that the 2020 Home Hardware Canada Cup, scheduled to take Nov. 24-29 in Fredericton, NB, has been postponed indefinitely.
“We all know the reality of our situation, and it goes beyond sports,” Curling Canada CEO Katherine Henderson said, in a press-release issued Tuesday. “Our primary goal and responsibility, always, is to keep athletes and volunteers safe and it was determined that without any kind of clarity about what the situation will look like in the late fall when these events were scheduled, we couldn’t responsibly go further in the planning process.”
This announcement comes one month after Sportsnet announced the cancellation of the first four events of the Grand Slam of Curling, and is likely a major blow to professional teams eager to get the 2020-2021 season underway.
Given the fact that the Canada Cup acts as a qualifying tournament for the 2021 Tim Hortons Roar of the Rings, Curling Canada intents to reschedule the event for some time in 2021.
With these cancellations, the 2020-21 season is now in jeopardy of being missed altogether. Given that restrictions on major sporting events are likely to remain in place for many months to come, it is doubtful that events like the Scotties and Brier will go ahead as usual next spring.
However, with the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics just over 500 days away, Curling Canada needs to find a way to run important events like the national championships and olympic trials, even if the events have to be held behind closed doors.
Curling Canada seeks to give as many elite teams as possible a chance of making it to the Olympics, through a complex qualifications process that spans multiple seasons. And while several teams have already qualified, the vast majority of spots at the 2021 Trials in Saskatoon are still up for grabs.
Given the fact that the 2020-21 season was to be the last full season prior to the Olympic trials in December 2021, the curling world will need to find a way to salvage the season in some way.
As other sports have shown, a willingness to adapt to the changing circumstances is key. Right now, the most likely scenario for Curling Canada would be to hold events such as the the Brier and Scotties, as well as the Canada Cup, without fans in a controlled environemnt.
While the Grand Slams had a number of international factors to consider when cancelling events, Curling Canada’s competitions don’t necessarily have the same issues to deal with. All athletes competing at nationals and the Canada Cup are Canadian, meaning there is no need for teams to quarantine for 14-days prior to the events.
While it is likely in Curling Canada’s best interests to host these major events as usual, with thousands of fans in the stands, the pandemic is making this an almost impossible task.
However, Curling Canada officials will continue to take the “wait and see approach,” offering no updates at this time on 2021 events.
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