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Part 2: Newsflash! What happened in the Curling World in August 2021?



Things are starting to get back to normal, or at least a new normal. Many rinks and clubs across the world are opening back up for the season, one that will arguably be the most crucial in a long time. Teams are scrambling to find new and innovative ways to reach the Olympics, and for those that already are in to Beijing 2022, finding a way to preserve much-needed energy and motivation heading into the pinnacle event of our sport. 

This is Part 2 of August 2021's Newsflash! edition. Here is an extensive rundown of bonspiel results from the month of August 2021 organized by date:

USA Junior National Championship (Aug 9- Aug 14, 2021)

The best junior men’s and women’s teams in the United States vied for a chance to represent the star spangled banner in either the upcoming World Junior Championship in Jonkoping, Sweden, or the World Junior-B Championship in Lohja, Finland, pending on qualification procedures. Donned in masks, nine men’s teams and twelve women’s teams hit the ice in Chaska, Minnesota. Complete with coverage of every draw on YouTube, the USCA continues to lead the pack in many respects when it comes to online streaming, even with a power outage on championship Saturday.

The top four men’s teams following the conclusion of the round robin/tiebreakers earned playoff spots in this year’s championship. The women’s draw was split into two pools of six, with the top four again advancing to the playoff round.

On the men’s side, #1 seed Team Daniel Casper (8-0) squared off against Team Wesley Wendling (5-3) while Team Kevin Tuma (7-1) met with Team Aidan Oldenburg (6-2) in the semifinals. Casper and Oldenburg emerged victorious, booking their spots in the inaugural Championship Final, while Teams Tuma and Wendling dropped down to the bronze medal match.

The third place battle saw Team Tuma get the better of Team Wendling in a high scoring affair of 12-8. The battle for the championship saw Team Casper cap off an impressive ten game win streak to claim the men’s division with a 5-3 victory vs. Team Oldenburg.

On the women’s side, Pool A’s Team Delaney Strouse (5-0) and Team Andie McDonald (4-1) punched their spot in the semis while Team Katherine Gourianova (4-1) topped Pool B based on last shot draw. A tiebreaker was needed to determine the second advancer in Pool B, with Team Samantha Jones (4-1) topping Team Claire Viau (4-1) to reach the playoff round. 

The semifinal matchups of Strouse vs. Jones and Gourianova vs. McDonald resulted in Strouse and Gourianova wins, catapulting those foursomes towards a bid for gold. 

Championship Saturday determined the three podium teams, with Jones doubling up on McDonald 6-3 to claim bronze. Strouse would complete her seven game win streak downing Gourianova in a 6-5 barn burner to snag the coveted national title.


Curve US Open of Curling Mixed Doubles (Aug 13-15, 2021)

15 pairings competed at the Four Seasons Club in Blaine, Minnesota for a $7,000 USD purse with the top eight receiving playoff berths. 

The duos of Jamie Sinclair/Rich Ruohonen (4-0) and Monica Walker/Alex Leichter (4-0) earned semifinal byes for placing in the top two after the round robin. The quarterfinals saw national champions Tabitha Peterson/Joe Polo beat Madison Bear/Andrew Stopera (3-1), while Christine McMakin/Riley Fenson (3-1) defeated Tara Peterson/Kroy Nernberger to reach the semis.

Peterson/Polo blasted the formerly undefeated Sinclair/Ruohonen duo 7-3 to claim their spot in the final. Elsewhere, Walker/Leichter bested McMakin/Fenson 6-3 to set up a Sunday date with the national champions.

The team of Walker/Leichter came out on top in the final 6-5 to claim the trophy.


Hokkaido Bank Curling Classic (Aug 19-22, 2021)

This year's Hokkaido Bank Classic was limited to domestic teams only with eight women's and men's teams playing in two pool round robins.

The women's tournament was headlined by the past four Japanese national champions, teams Yoshimura, Fujisawa, Nakajima, and Koana. Hotshot team Sae Yamamoto upset reigning national champions team Sayaka Yoshimura to break through Pool A and reach the playoffs with a 2-1 record, along with Tori Koana at a perfect 3-0. Pool B's Fujisawa (3-0) and Nakajima (2-1) rounded out the top four.

Nakajima and Yamamoto met up with Koana and Fujisawa respectively in the semis, with the latter two reigning victorious. Team Nakajima hung in to secure a third place finish, defeating Yamamoto 5-3 for the bronze. Meanwhile, Tori Koana upset the number 4 ranked team in the world team Fujisawa scoring one in the final end for a close 5-4 triumph. 

Current men's national champions team Yuta Matsumura and veteran Yusuke Morozumi finished pool play with identical, unblemished 3-0 performances. Tsuyoshi Yamaguchi and Takumi Maeda also reached the semifinals with 2-1 track records. 

The tournament's two front-runners would succeed in the semis with Matsumura shutting out Maeda 6-0 and Morizumi routing Yamaguchi 10-2. Headliners Matsumura scored a three-ender in the fifth end en route to a gold medal, topping Morozumi 7-2. Yamaguchi also scored a three-ender, albeit in an extra end to down Maeda 7-4 and settle for third spot.

The prize purse stood at $1,700,000 yen (appx. $19,500 CAD) for each division, with the champions receiving $1,000,000 yen (appx. $12,000 CAD) each.


USA Mixed Doubles Olympic Trials Qualifier (Aug 19-22, 2021)

The Denver Curling Club in Colorado played host to the first of two USA Curling mixed doubles trials qualifiers. 15 teams looked to advance to the four team page playoff system by competing in the triple knockout qualifying round. Skips of the 2018 US national teams fared well, as Jamie Sinclair/Rich Ruohonen cruised along to qualify on the A side. Reigning trials champions Becca and Matt Hamilton came through the B final, with their lone loss coming to Sinclair/Ruohonen. Monica Walker/Alex Leichter and Sydney Mullaney/Chase Sinnett round out the top four teams of the event, securing playoff berths through the C side. 

Sinclair/Ruohonen would drop down to the semifinal after suffering their first loss to the Hamilton duo in the 1v2 game. Curve US Open champions Walker/Leichter kept the ball rolling by ending Mullaney/Sinnett's run in the 3v4 game to move on to the semifinal. The skips of the 2018 men's and women's national teams rebounded by winning the semi, but hopes were quickly dashed with a 7-4 Hamilton win in the final. Becca and Matt Hamilton capture the first of the trials qualifiers, giving the sibling duo a chance for another Olympic bid.


Cameron's Brewing Mixed Doubles Cashspiel (Aug 20-22, 2021)

16 teams played in a four game round robin with the top eight advancing to the quarterfinal round. $6000 CAD was the prize purse played for.

Despite a field headlined by the elite teams of Jennifer Jones/Brent Laing and Lisa Weagle/John Epping, many up and coming teams pushed the envelope to succeed. The undefeated team of Keira McLaughlin/Tanner Horgan (4-0) would face the father-daughter combo of Emilie and Robert Desjardins (3-1) in the semifinals. A late three-ender in the eighth and final end helped McLaughlin/Horgan scrape by with a 6-5 final score. Also undefeated 2020 Ontario provincial champs Lauren Wasylkiw/Shane Konings (4-0) clashed with Kira Brunton/Brett Lyon-Hatcher (3-1) in the semi. Brunton and Lyon-Hatcher would score a five ball to make the final 8-3 in their favour. 

In the final, Brunton/Lyon-Hatcher would get a quick start stealing the first three ends to go up 5-0. However, McLaughlin/Horgan picked up the pieces by scoring a deuce in the fourth end and stealing the last half of the game to give them the title with a 7-5 victory.


Alberta Curling Series: Leduc (Aug 20-22, 2021)

A $1,600 CAD winner's purse was at stake for eight men's teams in a pool play format. Team Warren Cross and Jeremy Harty tied for first place in Pool A with identical 3-1 records. Karsten Sturmay steamrolled through Pool B finishing at a nifty 4-0. Team Ryan Parent snook in to the playoffs to face team Cross in the 3v4 game, while Sturmay and Harty took centre stage in the 1v2 game. 

Sturmay and Cross emerged as the victors, setting up a Harty-Cross semifinal to play for gold. Jeremy Harty scored two threes to defeat Warren Cross, and would avenge his loss to Sturmay in the 1v2 with a 7-2 result in the final.

A larger 16-team women's field set the stage for a $8,200 CAD purse. Team Kayla Skrlik and Corryn Brown posted 3-0 records in the A qualifier, boosting both to a bye to the semifinals. Lindsay Bertsch and Casey Scheidegger qualified with one loss on the B-side, with Laura Walker and Elysa Crough winning the C final to complete the playoff bracket.

Bertsch would move on to the semifinals after besting Scotties bronze medallists Walker, along with Scheidegger, who beat Crough. In the semifinal round, Bertsch would continue her winning ways by ending Kayla Skrlik's. However, Corryn Brown's hot streak wouldn't fade just yet, easily winning over Scheidegger to book their ticket to the final. Brown, the BC champions, kept the pedal to the metal by handing a 8-3 thumping to Bertsch to win their first event of the season.

Photo courtesy of CurlingZone


Baden Masters (Aug 20-22, 2021)

18 men's and 2 women's teams (Hasselborg & Schori) battled it out in Switzerland to the tune of a $48,000 CAD purse. The preliminary round was comprised of four pools of five teams duking it out for eight quarterfinal spots. Favourites team De Cruz, Edin, Retornaz, and Schwaller finished each of their pools with a perfect record, catapulting them into the quarters. Magnus Ramsfjell, Yves Stocker, Noe Traub, and Steffen Walstad completed the playoff brackets. 

Pool winners De Cruz, Edin, and Schwaller won their respective quarterfinal games, while noteworthy team Walstad toppled Retornaz to progress. Schwaller would edge out current world champions team Edin 5-4 to contest the championship. World bronze medallists team De Cruz got the better of Norway's Walstad 5-3 to set up an all-Swiss Sunday afternoon matchup. 

A three ball to open the scoring in the second end helped propel world ranked #6 Schwaller to double up 6-3 on their national rivals to claim gold and a nearly $17,000 CAD payday.



Oakville Under-25 Kickoff (Aug 20-22, 2021)

The Oakville Curling Club hosted it's first event of the season, appropriately kicking off the season. The women's division saw two Sudbury-based teams, Isabelle Ladouceur and Abby Deschene top the table to bypass quarterfinals and receive byes to the semifinals. The two would ultimately meet in the final, with Ladouceur coming through with an 8-1 blowout for the title. 

Dylan Niepage and Nicholas Lemieux claimed the top positions in the round robin and would also meet in the final after defeating separate counterparts in the semifinals. Team Niepage stole three in the 3rd to claim a 6-2 decision over Lemieux to emerge as the winner in the men's competition.


Oakville Fall Classic (Aug 27-29, 2021)

Oakville's second event of the season featured seven women's teams and eleven men's teams vying for the title. 

Each of the women's teams played four round robin games with the top four earning a spot in the elimination round. The newly-formed American squad of Jamie Sinclair, Monica Walker, Cora Farrell, and Elizabeth Cousins made quick work of their opponents, posting a flawless 4-0 RR record. Right behind them were PEI's Suzanne Birt, Ontario's Jacqueline Harrison, and Quebec's curling rockstars, team Laurie St-Georges.

Both semifinals ended in thievery as the Sinclair rink bested Laval's St-Georges 5-4 with a stolen single in the final end. Birt's PEI champions subsequently stole one point in an extra end to clip Harrison 5 to 4. Steals were also a main theme in the final for Sinclair and Birt, with both stealing pairs in the first half of the game to set up a 4-3 scoreline in favour of Birt. However, Jamie Sinclair pulled it all together in the business end of the match by popping a three in the sixth end. Birt would level the match by scoring a deuce to make it 6-6 in seven, but a deuce coming home resulted in an 8-6 victory for the Sinclair foursome.

On the men's side of things, Pat Ferris (4-0) and Mark Kean (3-1) secured semifinal byes while Glenn Howard (3-1), Rob Ainsley (3-1), Jordan McNamara (2-2), and team Beuk (2-2) booked quarterfinal spots to round out the six playoff squads. 

Howard met up with Ferris in their semi by beating McNamara, while team Beuk defeated Ainsley to set up a date with Kean. Team Beuk skipped by Tanner Horgan would emerge victorious, as well as Glenn Howard. The veteran Howard would prove too tall of a task for Horgan to overtake after scoring four in the first and a deuce in the third to charge ahead 6-1 at that point. The final score resulted in a 6-2 landslide.


Alberta Curling Series: Leduc Mixed Doubles (Aug 27-29, 2021)

16 mixed doubles teams competed in the first instalment of the first-ever Alberta Curling Series in Leduc, just a week after the Harty and Brown rinks won the men's and women's events. Identical to the women's division, teams began play in the triple knockout format, with the top eight teams moving on to the quarterfinals.

The two superstar parings of Sarah Wilkes/Brad Thiessen and Laura Walker/Kirk Muyres powered through the A qualifier with three wins out of the gate. Despite losing their opening game to Wilkes/Thiessen, Taylor McDonald/Geoff Walker rattled off three consecutive victories to advance out of the B qualifier. The well-known American duo of Sarah Anderson/Korey Dropkin also booked their ticket to the playoffs through the B side, as well as the veteran/junior team of Abby Marks/Marc Kennedy. Lisa Parent/Tyler Powell, Brittany Tran/Aaron Sluchinski, and Kayla Skrlik/Jeremy Harty all scraped out of the C event to preserve their chances of gold.

Despite winning three straight, the wheels fell off for Walker/Muyres against Tran/Sluchinski, with the latter advancing to the semifinal round to meet up with Marks/Kennedy. Wilkes/Thiessen and Anderson/Dropkin defeated their quarterfinal opponents to set up the other semifinal. Steals would seal the deal in both semis, as Wilkes/Thiessen stole two in an extra end to steal the win 7-5 from the Americans to play for the championship. Meanwhile, Marks/Kennedy stole in the 5th, 6th, and 7th ends to run Tran/Sluchinski out of stones in the final end for a 6-3 final score.

An appropriate all-Alberta championship final started out as a low-scoring affair with both teams trading singles through the first four. The turning point would arrive in the 5th after Abby Marks and Marc Kennedy stole two to gain a 4-2 advantage. Sarah Wilkes and Brad Thiessen only managed to respond with a single point in the sixth end. The match would be put out of reach after Marks/Kennedy exploded with a three ender in seven to capture a 7-3 victory.



Curve US Open of Curling Contender (Aug 27-29, 2021)

The Four Seasons Curling Club in Blaine, Minnesota hosted eight of the top men's teams and six of the top women's teams in the United States. 

Four semifinal places were up for grabs in the triple knockout men's event. Team Rich Ruohonen hit their stride early, rolling through the A event unbeaten to qualify. Team Daniel Casper carried their momentum from junior nationals to secure their playoff place by defeating team Greg Persinger to win the B final. Persinger would rebound immediately in the last chance C qualifier to punch his ticket to the semis. Team Scott Dunham did the same.

Despite coming from behind, Persinger would defeat Ruohonen and Dunham would end Casper's run in the semifinals to set up an all C qualifier final. Despite scoring four in the fourth end to grant Persinger a 5-4 lead, Dunham scored a single in the eighth end to send the game into an extra end, where he then stole a pair to take the win from Persinger 8-6.

Six women's teams played a five game round robin to decide the top team who would advance straight to the final, along with the second and third place teams who would earn a spot in a semifinal. Junior team Delaney Strouse (3-2) and Minneapolis' Kim Rhyme (3-2) would do exactly that for an opportunity to square off vs Fargo's Rachel Workin (5-1). Rhyme would deliver a 9-2 thumping to Strouse before claiming the title in a 5-1 final against number one seeded Workin.


Euro Super League (Aug 27-Aug 29)

Wheelchair curling took the forefront at the British National Academy in Stirling, Scotland to open the competitive season. One Norwegian team and one Swedish squad ventured across the North Sea to battle the two domestic teams of Pimblett and Nibloe.

It was smooth sailing for most of the event for 2018 Paralympic silver medallists team Norway. The team skipped by Jostein Stordahl handled most teams easily, with the exception of GB's Hugh Nibloe. Nevertheless, the Norwegians won the event by putting up an impressive 5-1 record over the three days of competition. The aforementioned Nibloe and his British rink ended in a tie for second place with Sweden's Viljo Petersson-Dahl at an even 3 wins and 3 losses. The other GB rink, team Stewart Pimblett, finished at 1-5.


Russian Mixed Doubles Cup (Aug 27-30)

20 of Russia's best mixed doubles pairings entered play in Irkutsk, Siberia. Four five team pools would decide the top eight who would book their place in the quarterfinals. The top four teams competed in the semifinal round to determine who would contest the gold and bronze.

Those final four teams consisted of Nkeiruka Ezekh/Alexey Stukalskiy taking on Anastasia Barbarykina/Konstantin Manasevich for gold and Anastasia Mishchenko/Alexey Tuzov battling Olga Antonova/Oleg Krasikov for the bronze. Ezekh (who is known for playing with Anna Sidorova) as well as Stukalskiy (who plays with Alexey Timofeev) completed their unblemished run for the title with a 9-2 victory in the final after scoring a whopping a five in the first end vs. Barbarykina/Manasevich. Mishchenko/Tuzov did even better, scoring a six, equivalent to an eight ender in the four-person format to post an overwhelming 11-4 final score against Antonova/Krasikov to settle for third place.


Pacific Cup Khabarovsk (Aug 28-Sep 1)

Four mixed doubles teams and four other European duos met up in the second of two mixed doubles spiels in eastern Russia. The field was split up with two pools of four, with the top two from each getting semifinal spots.

The longtime Hungarian pairing and two-time world champions Dorottya Palancsa/Zsolt Kiss topped the table in Pool A with a 3-0 record. Two of the best skips in Russia, Anna Sidorova/Alexey Timofeev also put up a 3-0 performance. The two would continue their winning ways to meet in the final where the Russians stole three singles in the last three end to take the win away from the Hungarians, 7-5.

RCF's world representatives Anastasia Moskaleva/Alexander Eremin battled their Russian counterparts in Anna Samoilik/Mikhail Vaskov for third place. Two three enders helped propel the the three-time Russian mixed doubles champions Moskaleva and Eremin to an 8-7 triumph to pick up bronze.



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