Olympic qualification a key storyline this curling season

With the Paris Games in the books, the countdown is on to the next Olympics in Milan and Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy.

The Winter Games are set for February 2026 and the Canadian curling qualification playdowns - for mixed doubles, at least - will kick off in just a few months.

Olympic representation is one of many intriguing storylines as the Roaring Game returns. Here's a look at some other hot talking points as the 2024-25 season begins.

MIXED PLAYDOWNS

After missing the podium in mixed doubles at the 2022 Beijing Games, Curling Canada tweaked the timing of its Olympic qualification event and adjusted a key rule for this quadrennial.

Instead of finalizing Canadian representatives a few weeks before the Games, the Canadian Mixed Doubles Trials will be held over a year out from competition.

The 16-team domestic playdowns will be held Dec. 30-Jan. 4 in Liverpool, N.S.

For the first time, Canadian athletes will be allowed to compete in mixed doubles and four-player team competition should they qualify in both disciplines.

BUSY SCHEDULE

The already compact curling schedule includes some key mixed doubles events that will serve as direct-entry qualifiers for the Trials.

Berths will be on the line at the Oct. 31-Nov. 3 competition in Abbotsford, B.C., the Nov. 21-24 event in Guelph, Ont., and the Dec. 5-8 competition in Banff/Canmore, Alta.

Several berths in the four-player Canadian Curling Trials - set for Nov. 22-30, 2025 in Halifax - will be determined by the end of the campaign.

HARRIS CASE

It remains unclear when Team Kerri Einarson lead Briane Harris might return to competitive curling.

She was provisionally suspended last February. Harris tested positive for trace amounts of the banned anabolic agent Ligandrol, her lawyer said.

The case is before the Switzerland-based Court of Arbitration for Sport but no other details - including a date for a potential hearing - have been released.

Team alternate Krysten Karwacki will fill in for Harris at the Saville Shootout in Edmonton this weekend.

GRAND SLAMS

The showcase event on the Grand Slam of Curling calendar - a series now owned by The Curling Group - remains without a confirmed date and venue.

The Princess Auto Players' Championship is traditionally held in Toronto in mid-April.

Sportsnet, which sold the circuit last spring, will continue to serve as event broadcaster. The Slam season kicks off Oct. 1 with the HearingLife Tour Challenge in Charlottetown.

COACH BOTTCHER

A top free agent should he one day return to the four-player game, Brendan Bottcher is focusing on mixed doubles and coaching this season.

He was let go by his teammates last April and replaced at skip by Brad Jacobs. Bottcher will partner with Rachel Homan this season and also coach her four-player team.

Coach Don Bartlett guided Team Rachel Homan to a stunning 67-7 record and seven championships in 2023-24.

CC IN FOR JJ

Team Jennifer Jones - now known as Team Chelsea Carey - has a new leader with Carey taking over at skip for the curling legend, who closed out her four-player career last April.

Carey will anchor a squad that's ranked fifth in the world. Jones plans to continue playing mixed doubles with her husband Brent Laing.

HEADING WEST

Calgary's WinSport Event Centre had sellout crowds at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts last winter.

Organizers are hoping the turnout will be just as strong for the Sept. 25-29 PointsBet Invitational.

The Season of Champions opener was plagued by attendance woes last season in Oakville, Ont.

WORLD RANKINGS

There is plenty of international flavour in the latest world curling rankings.

Italy's Joel Retornaz is sandwiched by Scotland's Bruce Mouat (No. 1) and Ross Whyte (No. 3) with fourth-ranked Brad Gushue the lone Canadian entry in a top five that includes Sweden's Niklas Edin.

Ottawa's Rachel Homan leads the women's rankings ahead of Switzerland's Silvana Tirinzoni, South Korea's Eun ji Gim, Sweden's Anna Hasselborg and Winnipeg's Chelsea Carey.

SPONSOR SITUATION

The Canadian Curling Trials remains without a title sponsor even though the competition is just over a year away.

Tim Hortons served as title sponsor for five editions of the event. The restaurant chain, which also sponsored the Brier from 2005-23, declined to renew its title sponsorship last year.

Montana's has since come on board as the title sponsor of the national men's championship.

YOUNG GUNS

Team Taylor Reese-Hansen and Team Jordon McDonald are two young Canadian rinks to keep an eye on this season.

They're coming off victories at the U25 NextGen Classic in Edmonton. Both teams received NextGen funding and berths in the upcoming PointsBet Invitational.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 4, 2024.

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