Canada Cup | |
---|---|
Established | 2003 |
2019 host city | Leduc, Alberta |
2019 arena | Sobeys Arena |
Purse | $265,000 (2019) |
Current champions (2019) | |
Men | John Epping |
Women | Rachel Homan |
Current edition | |
The Canada Cup (branded as the Home Hardware Canada Cup for sponsorship reasons, and also referred to as the Canada Cup of Curling) is a major men's and women's curling championship in Canada. It is organized by Curling Canada and is one of its major events on its "Season of Champions". The event is frequently used as a qualifier for various other events, such as the Canadian Olympic Curling Trials, Pre-Trials and Continental Cup. Since 2013, the Canada Cup is not held during the same curling season as the Winter Olympic Games.
The first event was held in 2003 at the Sport Mart Place in Kamloops, British Columbia, the Cup's home until 2008. During this time the event was sponsored by the Strauss Herb Company. The first event featured a total purse of $220,000, divided equally for the men's and women's events. Subsequent events however have seen smaller purses available. [1]
In 2004, a second tier of competition, the qualification rounds Canada Cup East and Canada Cup West were added. [2] In 2006, this had changed to men's and women's qualification rounds. The qualifying rounds were held every year with the John Shea Insurance Canada Cup Qualifier being held at the Ottawa and Rideau curling clubs in Ottawa, Ontario and the Diversified Transportation Canada Cup Qualifier being held at the Saville Sports Centre in Edmonton, Alberta. The men's and women's qualifiers alternated between the two cities.
On February 18, 2008, the Canadian Curling Association announced that the 2009 finals of the Canada Cup of Curling would be held at the Farrell Agencies Arena in Yorkton, Saskatchewan.
The 2009-10 season was without a Canada Cup, with the event returning in December 2010 rather in the Spring like it had been previously. The Canada Cup qualifiers were abolished for the 2010 event, using a number of smaller bonspiels to feed the event. The 2010 event was held at the Medicine Hat Arena in Medicine Hat, Alberta. [1]
The 2011 event in Cranbrook, British Columbia hosted seven teams of each gender instead of ten. The teams played in a round robin as in previous years, with the top three advancing to the playoff round. The second and third-placed teams played in the semifinal, and the winner faced the first-placed team in the final. The 2012 event used the same format. [1]
At present, there are no longer any qualifying tournaments. Teams qualify based on their World Curling Tour Order of Merit rankings, with one spot reserved for the top-ranking non-qualified team on the Canadian Team Ranking System closer to the event. [3]
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, Curling Canada stated that the 2020 Canada Cup would likely be postponed to an unspecified date in 2021, citing its role in qualification for trials for the 2022 Winter Olympics. [4] The 2021 event ultimately did not go ahead, and there are no plans to hold the event in the near future. [5] It was replaced on Curling Canada's Season of Champions calendar by the PointsBet Invitational. [6]
John C. Morris is a Canadian curler, and two-time Olympic gold medallist from Canmore, Alberta. Morris played third for the Kevin Martin team until April 24, 2013. Morris, author of the book Fit to Curl, is the son of Maureen and Earle Morris, inventor of the "Stabilizer" curling broom. Morris grew up in Gloucester, Ontario and at the age of five began curling at the Navy Curling Club.
The John Shea Insurance Canada Cup Qualifier was an annual curling bonspiel held at the Ottawa and Rideau Curling Clubs in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. In odd years, the event was a qualifier for the men's Canada Cup of Curling while in even years the event is the women's qualifier. It was held annually in December, and was part of the World Curling Tour.
Dawn Kathleen McEwen is a Canadian retired curler from Winnipeg, Manitoba. She was the long-time lead for the Jennifer Jones rink, who became Olympic champions, winning gold for Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics. McEwen is a two-time world champion in curling, having won with Jones at the 2008 World Championships and again at the 2018 World Championships. In 2019, McEwen was named the greatest Canadian female lead in history in a TSN poll of broadcasters, reporters and top curlers.
Rachel Catherine Homan is a Canadian international curler. Homan is a former Canadian junior champion, a three-time Canadian national champion, and the 2017 world champion, all as a skip. She was also the skip of the Canadian women's curling team at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Valerie Sweeting is a Canadian curler from Lottie Lake, Alberta She currently plays third for Team Kerri Einarson. Sweeting skipped Alberta to a silver medal at the 2014 and 2015 Scotties Tournament of Hearts and won the tournament in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 with Team Kerri Einarson.
Brendan Michael Bottcher is a Canadian curler from Spruce Grove, Alberta. Bottcher is a three-time provincial men's champion, and was the skip of the 2021 Canadian men's championship team, having led Alberta to victory at the 2021 Tim Hortons Brier.
Lisa Colleen Weagle is a Canadian curler from Ottawa, Ontario. Weagle was the lead on the Rachel Homan team from 2010 until March 12, 2020, when the team announced they would be parting ways with her. She then joined Team Jennifer Jones for two seasons until the team disbanded on March 15, 2022. Weagle was known for her ability to make the eponymous "Weagle" shot, which the Homan rink had used in high frequency while she was a member of the team.
Laura Walker is a Canadian curler from Edmonton, Alberta. She is a two-time Canadian University champion, a national junior champion, world junior silver medallist and world mixed doubles bronze medallist. Walker is originally from Scarborough, Ontario.
Jessica "Jessie" Hunkin is a Canadian curler from Parkland County, Alberta. She currently skips her own team out of Spruce Grove.
Joanne M. Courtney is a Canadian curler from Edmonton, Alberta. From 2014 to 2022, she was a member of the Rachel Homan rink which won the 2017 World Women's Curling Championship and represented Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
The 2017 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials were held from December 2 to 10 at the Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata, Ottawa, Ontario. The winners of the men's and women's events would represent Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Darren Moulding is a Canadian curler from Lacombe, Alberta and curls out of the Saville Sports Centre and the Lacombe Curling Club. He is a former Canadian Junior Silver Medallist, a Canadian Mixed Champion, and represented Alberta in the 2017, 2018, 2020 and Team Wild Card in the 2019 Brier Canadian men's championship.
The 2018 Home Hardware Canada Cup was held December 5–9 at Affinity Place in Estevan, Saskatchewan. The tournament winners qualified for the 2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Pre-Trials.
A total of 10 teams in each tournament will qualify for a quota of 100 athletes in curling at the 2022 Winter Olympics. A further 10 mixed doubles pairs will qualify for a total of 20 athletes. Therefore, a total of 120 athletes can qualify in total to compete in the curling competitions.
The 2005 Strauss Canada Cup of Curling was held March 15–20, 2005, at Sport Mart Place in Kamloops, British Columbia. The winning teams received berths into the 2005 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials.
The 2019 Home Hardware Canada Cup was held from November 27 – December 1 at Sobeys Arena in Leduc, Alberta. The tournament winners were the first qualifiers for the 2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials.
The 2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials were held from November 20 to 28 at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The winners of the men's and women's events represented Canada at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
Jeremy Harty is a Canadian curler from Calgary, Alberta. He currently plays third for Team Aaron Sluchinski.
Kyler Kleibrink is a Canadian curler from Calgary, Alberta. He currently skips his own team out of Langley, British Columbia.
Kurtis Goller is a Canadian curler from Calgary, Alberta. He currently plays lead on Team Karsten Sturmay.