HOMAN, TEAMMATES BRING THE HEAT
Ottawa rink leaves no stone unturned in drive to be the best on the ice
As partners in the new Olympic discipline of mixed doubles curling, John Morris and Rachel Homan pride themselves in telling it like it is. No political correctness. No holding back on constructive criticism. No hiding of emotions, good or bad.
So Morris feels totally comfortable in explaining why Homan — at age 28 — is so dominant at such a relatively young age.
“I mean this as a compliment — she is as close to a guy curler as I have ever seen,” Morris said Thursday before hitting the ice with his B.C. foursome at Calgary’s WinSport Arena where the Humpty’s Champions Cup runs through Sunday. “She can throw it really hard, like a guy. She’s got that great intensity. She is great at reading the ice.”
And she comes by those characteristics honestly, according to Morris.
“I played with her brother back in juniors and Mark was the same way,” Morris said. “They’re both very competitive. They hate to lose. And those are qualities you need to be a great curler.”
Great is one way to describe Homan’s rise from talented junior to world champion. The Ottawa product is the youngest skip — male or female — to win three Canadian championships. Together with third Emma Miskew, second Joanne Courtney and lead Lisa Weagle, Homan is an early favourite to win the 2017 Roar of the Rings and represent Canada at the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea (although we all know reigning Olympic champion Jennifer Jones and her Winnipeg foursome might have something to say about that).
“Rachel’s team is the best team in the world and has been for a couple seasons,” said Sportsnet commentator Mike Harris, who is in town to cover the final event of the 2016-17 Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling. “Last year the main difference was that they lost the one game at provincials. You could argue they had a better season last year, but just didn’t make it to the Scotties. They’ve just been so dominant for a while now.”
Known for their work ethic in the gym, Homan and Co. never shy away from bringing the heat.
“They’re the best hitters, I would say, by a pretty wide margin,” Harris said. “They’re the best team throwing the big weight takeout in the women’s game. And they’re unbelievably driven. They practise on the ice all the time. And they’ve been doing this for a long time. Even though they’re young, they’ve been winning women’s curling events since they were teenagers.”
Looking back on a magical 2016-17 season, Homan singles out the 8-3 victory over Russia for the world title as her personal highlight. Canada swept the 11-game round robin at Beijing’s Capital Gymnasium to earn the first seed and won all 13 games in the tournament. The flawless performance gave Canada its first women’s world title in nine years.
“That was so special,” Homan said Thursday after dispatching Winnipeg’s Kerri Einarson 6-4 to improve her record to 2-1 at the Champions Cup. “It was overseas, and we had so much support. It was definitely something we’ll never forget and something we’re really proud of.”
In terms of career highlights, however, a victory at home in Ottawa at the 2017 Roar of the Rings might be hard to match.
“It’s going to be tough to call anyone a favourite heading into the trials,” Miskew said. “Everyone’s kind of had their moment here and there to shine. It’s all going to depend on who is in the best headspace when we get there. We’re really excited that it’s in our hometown. We’re really pumped, because we’ve never actually played in Ottawa since we were kids. For once, we’ll be the hometown team. Not the home province team, but the hometown team.”
In handicapping the field from afar, Morris figures it comes down to Homan and Jones as the favourites.
And he warns Canadian curling fans against jumping to the wrong conclusion when it comes to Homan’s signature stoicism.
“People who don’t know her might think she comes across as cold sometimes,” Morris said. “But that’s just part of her rocksolid demeanour. When you get to know her she’s a super nice person. That’s just the way she is on the ice. And we don’t go out there and curl to make as many friends as we can. You curl to try to win.”