Reigning Canadian champs Einarson, Gushue to represent county at Pan Continental Championships
Published
The reigning Canadian champions will represent the country at this inaugural Pan Continental Curling Championships this fall, Curling Canada announced on Wednesday.
Scotties Tournament of Hearts champion Team Kerri Einarson and Tim Hortons Brier champion Team Brad Gushue will wear the Red and White at WinSport Arena in Calgary from Oct. 30-Nov. 5.
“Any time you get to wear a Canadian uniform is special, and to do it in this historic first event will make it even more memorable,” said Einarson. “We’ll be working hard for the rest of the summer to make sure that we’re ready to bring our best to Calgary.”
The tournament will serve as a qualifier for the 2023 World Women's Curling Championship in Sandviken, Sweden (March 18-26) and the 2023 World Men's Curling Championship in Ottawa (April 1-9) from the Americas, Asia and Pacific regions. The top five teams will qualify their counties for the world championships. The host nations (Sweden for women and Canada for men) have already automatically qualified.
“It should be an interesting and competitive event, and we’re honoured to have a chance to be the first Canadian men’s team to compete in it,” said Gushue. “We know what’s on the line, so there’s a lot of work to be done between now and then to make sure we’re ready.”
Einarson, alongside third Val Sweeting, second Shannon Birchard and lead Briane Meilleur, captured the bronze medal at last year's women's worlds in Prince George, B.C., while Gushue, third Mark Nichols, second Brett Gallant and lead Geoff Walker earned silver at the men's worlds in Las Vegas. Former Team Brad Jacobs second E.J. Harnden has since replaced Gallant.
The women's event will feature Canada, United States, Brazil, South Korea, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan and Australia while the men's side will have Canada, United States, Brazil, South Korea, Japan, China, Chinese Taipei and New Zealand.