National Post (National Edition)
Jones eager to live the Olympic ‘dream’ again
Winnipeg skip co-favourite at Canadian trials
Ever since she left Russia nearly four years ago with a gold medal hanging around her neck, veteran skip Jennifer Jones has been thinking about how nice it would be to get another one.
Her pursuit of a second consecutive Olympic gold begins in earnest on Saturday when the Canadian Olympic curling trials get underway at Ottawa’s Canadian Tire Centre.
Jones and her team from Winnipeg won the Olympic trials in 2013 and went undefeated at the Olympics in Sochi a couple months later. During that event, Jones talked at length about how she was living a lifelong dream just by participating, let alone standing atop the podium.
Nothing has changed four years later.
“All you ever dream about is being an Olympian,” Jones said. “We made that dream come true. Once you get to the Olympics, all you think about is getting back. It’s that amazing and incredible and it’s more than you would ever have dreamed it would be.
“We’d love to experience it again. We were fortunate enough to do it one time and if we have the privilege to do it again, it would be another dream come true and a huge honour. If we don’t, we have no regrets. We’ve lived the dream and you can’t really ask for more than that.”
Jones, who is one of the most decorated curlers in Canadian history, is one of the co-favourites at the trials this year, in which the winner earns a ticket to the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea.
The other is Rachel Homan, the 2017 Canadian and world women’s champion, who will be competing in her hometown of Ottawa.
“We’ve played in Ontario a few times and the crowd has been amazing, so we’re really excited to play in Ottawa, which we’ve never done before,” said Emma Miskew, who plays third for Homan. “It’s a great opportunity for us and I think it’s going to motivate us a lot.”
Of course, being the favourite at the Olympic trials hasn’t always been a good thing.
“You’d be a bit ridiculous if you didn’t know that (Jones) and (Homan) are the favourites … that’s obvious,” said 2016 Canadian champion Chelsea Carey of Calgary.
“But at the Olympic trials, you often don’t see the favourites win because the pressure is just so incredible.
“There have been a lot of upset wins and in Canada we’re lucky enough that even when that happens we’re still winning medals at the Olympics. The depth is just so incredible in this country. There’s been a bar set that it’s not always the favourites and, in fact, being a favourite can be detrimental.”
While Jones won the trials as a co-favourite in 2013 and Sandra Schmirler won as the clear favourite in 1997, other winners like Cheryl Bernard in 2009 and Shannon Kleibrink in 2005 came in a little more under the radar.
Not all favourites have the kind of steely nerve and experience shared by Jones and Homan, however. Jones even has the benefit of having been through the grind of the trials and winning it and capping it with a perfect performance at the Olympics.
“Really, the only difference with the trials from any other event is that it only happens every four years,” Jones said. “In a lot of events you might say, ‘Well, I’ve got another chance next year.’ For the Olympic trials, it’s four more years and a lot happens in four years. It’s a big commitment and you want to make sure you put your best on the ice.”
This year’s trials field includes the nine teams that have been the most consistent in recent years in national events and on the Grand Slam circuit.
After Homan, Jones and Carey, there’s a significant drop-off in terms of teams with big-event experience.
Edmonton’s Val Sweeting, Regina’s Michelle Englot (who is skipping a Winnipeg-based team) and Krista McCarville of Thunder Bay, Ont., have all competed in plenty of national women’s championships, but none have won it all.
The rest of the field is comprised of up-and-comers, including Casey Scheidegger of Lethbridge, Alta, Julie Tippin from Woodstock, Ont., and Toronto’s Allison Flaxey. They can’t hold a candle to some of the other teams in terms of experience, but have proven in recent years that they can compete with the best.
“We’ve played every team and we’ve had great games against them,” Jones said. “I expect every team to be a contender. It really is a grind. It’s hard, but that’s what makes it so rewarding at the end.”
ALL YOU EVER DREAM ABOUT IS BEING AN OLYMPIAN.