Tag: Covid

Curling Canada’s Silence is Deafening

Winsport Arena in Calgary could play host to several Season of Champions events in a bubble format

With every day that passes by without an announcement by Curling Canada, it becomes more and more likely that the 2021 Season of Champions events (Scotties, Brier, worlds) will not go ahead in their scheduled dates.

While it has long been rumoured that the national curling association, which sanctions some of the biggest events of the year, is looking at hosting these events using a bubble format, most likely in Calgary, there has been no official word for months. 

In fact, Curling Canada has yet to formally announced the postponement/cancelation of the events at their original sites. You can actually still buy ticket packages for the Brier and Scotties!

While it is understandable that finding an alternative way of hosting these events is likely a massive undertaking, with existing contracts needing to be amended, and health protocols put in place, the fact that Curling Canada has yet to make any sort of official statement is concerning. 

Despite the fact that planning has likely been underway for quite some time, Curling Canada’s reluctance to officially announce the alternate events could mean that they are in jeopardy. 

Given the recent cancelation of events and closure of clubs across the country, due to a spike in COVID cases in many hotspots, it is quite possible that organizers are reconsidering their ability to host these events in their scheduled time-slots. 

The delayed response could be a result of Curling Canada not actually knowing when it will be able to run events like the Scotties Tournament of Hearts or Tim Hortons Brier. Currently, the Scotties is scheduled to begin February 20, which is now less than three months away. 

It is likely that Curling Canada will only announce these events when it is certain they will be able to go ahead without interruption, thus avoiding the scenario that played out in Prince George at this year’s World Women’s Championship, with the event being canceled the day before it was set to begin, after teams had already flown in from around the world.

While all these uncertainties justify Curling Canada’s inability to formally announce alternative plans for the Brier and Scotties, their reluctance to formally postpone or cancel the events at their original date and location is perplexing. Even if the governing body is waiting to see whether or not it will be possible to offer the host cities future editions of the events, there is no reason as to why organizers and ticket holders have been kept in the dark for so long.

Grand Slam Cancellations Leave Rinks in Limbo

Anil Mungal

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. 

Corporations like Canadian Beef pay big bucks to get their logos on the jackets of the country’s top teams

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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