Mike Peplinski

Last updated
Mike Peplinski
Curler
Born (1974-02-11) February 11, 1974 (age 51)
La Crosse, Wisconsin
Team
Curling clubEau Claire Curling Club
Curling career Curling pictogram.svg
Member AssociationFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
World Championship
appearances		1 (1991)
Olympic
appearances		1 (1998)
Medal record
Men's curling
US Men's Championship
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2000 Ogden
US Olympic Trials
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1997 Duluth
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 1991 Glasgow
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 1994 Sofia
US Junior Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg1994 Madison
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg1995 Hibbing
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg1991 Bemidji

Mike Peplinski (born February 11, 1974) is an American curler and coach from Galesville, Wisconsin. He was the vice-skip for the Tim Somerville team at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, where curling debuted as an official Olympic medal sport. The team finished fourth after losing the bronze medal game to Norway. Peplinski was named Male Athlete of the Year by the United States Curling Association in 1994 and Developmental Coach of the Year by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee in 2022. [1]

Contents

Early life and education

Peplinski began curling in the fourth grade at the Centerville Curling Club in Centerville, Wisconsin. He played shortstop for the Viterbo College (now Viterbo University) baseball team. [2] Peplinski was later inducted into the Viterbo Athletics Wall of Fame in recognition of his accomplishments in baseball and curling. [3]

Curling career

Peplinski was part of the first U.S. curling team to compete against Russia in 1993. He won the United States Junior Curling Championships in 1994 and 1995, and competed at three World Junior Curling Championships (1991, 1994, and 1995), earning bronze medals in 1991 and 1994. He was named All-Star Skip at the 1994 championship. Peplinski also competed as an alternate at the 1991 World Men's Curling Championship.

During the 1992–93 season, he competed in two international junior events in Switzerland. His team finished fifth out of 60 teams from 14 countries competing for the Wettinger Trophy in Baden, and went on to win the Bull Trophy in Grindelwald with a 4–2 record, including a victory over the Canadian Junior Men’s Champions. In the 1994–95 season, he led his team to an undefeated 11–0 record at the United States Junior Curling Championships and became one of the youngest skips to reach the semifinals of the United States Men's Curling Championships. [4]

He went on to compete in several U.S. Men’s Nationals, finishing as runner-up in 2000 and semifinalist in 1996, 1997, 1999, and 2001. He was also a qualifier for the 2001 U.S. Olympic trials. Peplinski was a semifinalist for the Sullivan Award in both 1996 and 1997, an honor recognizing the top amateur athletes in the United States. In January 1998, prior to his appearance at the Winter Olympics, Peplinski was featured on Late Night with David Letterman alongside other members of the U.S. curling team. While in Japan for the Olympics, he met with Letterman’s mother on three occasions as part of the show’s recurring “Dave’s Mom” segments, which featured humorous interviews conducted by Letterman's real-life mother. [5]

Coaching

Peplinski coached Team Hebert (skip Caden Hebert) to several national and international titles:

Health

In 1994, Peplinski was diagnosed with idiopathic membranous nephropathy, a rare kidney disease. He delayed a kidney transplant in order to compete in the 1998 Winter Olympics. [7] The transplant was performed on June 11, 1998, with his father-in-law, Bill, serving as donor. [8]

References

  1. ↑ "Mike Peplinski Named 2022 Developmental Coach of the Year". USA Curling. USA Curling. 2023-06-28. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
  2. ↑ "Viterbo Lumen, Fall 1998". Viterbo University Digital Collections. Viterbo University. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
  3. ↑ "Through the Decades: 1990s". Viterbo University. Viterbo University. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
  4. ↑ "Mike Peplinski". Team USA. United States Olympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2015-09-05. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
  5. ↑ "A Canadian Sport Chicago Could Love". Chicago Tribune. 1998-02-09. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
  6. ↑ "USA Curling Takes Silver at 2025 Winter World University Games". USA Curling. USA Curling. 2025-01-21. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
  7. ↑ Armstrong, Kevin (1998-02-07). "He Won't Let Illness End Dream". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
  8. ↑ Smith, Gary (1998-08-29). "He had two kidneys, no doubts". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
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