BC champion Gauthier joins Team Koe in Alberta
Published
The 2023 Alberta men's curling champions are tweaking their lineup going into next season.
On Thursday night, Team Kevin Koe second Bradley Thiessen announced that he would be stepping away from competitive curling at the conclusion of this season. Then on Friday morning, Team Koe announced on Twitter that Jacques Gauthier, the 24-year-old who skipped British Columbia at the recent Tim Hortons Brier, would be joining the squad in 2023-24.
Gauthier announced earlier this week he would be leaving his team for a curling opportunity outside of the province.
Team Koe - featuring skip Kevin Koe, third Tyler Tardi, second Thiessen and lead Karrick Martin - joined forces last off-season and had some early season struggles before finding their form at the Alberta playdowns in January, beating Team Brendan Bottcher in the final to capture the provincial crown.
At the Canadian championship in London, Koe's rink made the playoffs with a 7-1 record before falling to Ontario's Team Mike McEwen in the page qualifier.
Gauthier, the 2020 world junior champion, was making his first appearance in Brier, posting a 3-5 record.
Gauthier will be the import on the team and is cousins with Tardi.