The 2022 Winter Olympics are just a few months away which means it is time to buckle down and figure out who will sport the maple leaf come February.
Curling Canada began its quest to find the best of the best beginning in September with the first bonspiel of the Olympic trial calendar. It all culminates with the 2021 Tim Hortons Curling Trials in November where nine men's and nine women's rinks will compete to represent Canada in Beijing.
Here's everything you need to know about who qualified for, and is competing in, the Olympic trials for the four-person curling teams.
When and where are the 2021 Tim Hortons Curling Trials?
- Date: Nov. 20-28
- Location: SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon, Sask.
The final event for four-player team qualifying will be held Nov. 20-28 in Saskatoon, Sask. Teams will compete in round-robin action with the top three teams advancing to the playoffs. The top team earns an automatic spot in the final and the second and third-place teams go head-to-head in the semifinal. The winner will represent Canada.
Who has qualified for the 2021 Tim Hortons Curling Trials?
Due to the pandemic, new events were created to find the cream of the crop. It should be noted that the 2020 Canada Cup was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so the winning teams from 2019 have earned slots.
Men's
- 2019 Canada Cup: John Epping (Toronto, Ont.)
- 2020 Tim Hortons Brier: Brad Gushue (St. John's, Nfld.)
- Ranked in top three of 2018-19 Canadian Team Ranking System: Brendan Bottcher (Edmonton, Alta.), Kevin Koe (Calgary, Alta.)
- Ranked in top three of 2019-20 Canadian Team Ranking System: Brad Jacobs (Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.)
- 2021 Tim Hortons Brier: Brendan Bottcher
- Canadian Curling Pre-Trials Direct-Entry Event: Mike McEwen (Winnipeg, Man.), Matt Dunstone (Regina, Sask.)
- Home Hardware Pre-Trials qualifier: Jason Gunnlaugson (Morris, Man.), Tanner Horgan (Kingston, Ont.)
Women's
- 2019 Canada Cup: Rachel Homan (Ottawa, Ont.)
- 2020 Scotties Tournament of Hearts: Kerri Einarson (Gimli, Man.)
- Ranked in top three of 2019-20 Canadian Team Ranking System: Tracy Fleury (East St. Paul, Man.), Jennifer Jones (Winnipeg, Man.)
- 2021 Scotties Tournament of Hearts: Kerri Einarson
- Canadian Curling Pre-Trials Direct-Entry Event: Casey Scheidegger (Lethbridge, Alta.,), Kelsey Rocque (Edmonton, Alta.), Laura Walker (Edmonton, Alta.)
- Home Hardware Pre-Trials qualifier: Krista McCarville (Thunder Bay, Ont.), Jacqueline Harrison (Dundas, Ont.)
How did teams still qualify for the 2021 Tim Hortons Curling Trials?
Some teams qualified the old-fashioned way by winning the Scotties or the Brier. Due to the pandemic and limited time on the sheets, new events were added to qualify teams. There were two events in September and a pre-trial event in October.