National Post (National Edition)
Retired Kennedy subs for Fry
Ex-olympian also active in coaching role
Marc Kennedy’s step back from the world of high-level curling hasn’t gone exactly as planned.
The two-time Olympian and 2010 gold medallist announced at the end of last season that he did not intend to play in the 2018-19 season as he was in need of a physical and mental break from the grind of the roarin’ game.
He had a nagging hip injury that needed rest and rehabilitation and he simply couldn’t see himself returning to the Kevin Koe team for another year of intense travel and competition so soon after the foursome came short of a medal at the Olympics in South Korea.
He quickly realized he wasn’t ready to completely shut himself off from the game, however. So the 36-year-old from Edmonton found a way to stay involved as soon as the new curling season rolled round.
“I’m more engaged with the game than I thought I would be,” Kennedy said this week. “I thought I’d be OK with stepping away completely but that wasn’t the case. I was completely away for about four months and I knew something didn’t feel right.”
So he reached out to Curling Canada to see if there was anything he could do from a consulting standpoint and was quickly welcomed aboard by high performance director Gerry Peckham. He’s been working since the start of the curling season as a roving coach, helping out the 15 teams (eight women’s and seven men’s) in the National Team Program.
“I’ve been able to help some teams and step in and pass down some of the experience that I’ve been lucky to have,” Kennedy said. “I’ve really enjoyed it. I don’t have to compete at the highest level to feel part of the sport.”
That new role, and the job of rehabbing his hip, have kept Kennedy busy enough. Now, he’s adding another wrinkle to the plan.
Kennedy will play third for the Brad Jacobs team at the Canada Cup in Estevan, Sask., Dec. 5-9. He’s filling in for Ryan Fry, the longtime third for the Jacobs foursome who helped the team to a gold medal at the 2014 Olympics. Fry took his own step back from the game earlier this month after a drunken incident at a second-tier cash bonspiel in Red Deer, Alta.
“That was a bit of a surprise that came out of nowhere,” Kennedy said.
“I took a full day to make the decision that I thought was best. There were lots of things that came into play, including my own health still. I had to ask myself if I was ready to do that or if I felt like I could go and help them and contribute.
“I knew it was a great opportunity to help them out at a time when they’re going through a tough couple of weeks. If I can come in and help them get through this period of time for their team, then it’s the right thing to do.”
The Jacobs team also announced this week that Matt Wozniak, the former longtime second for the Mike Mcewen team out of Winnipeg, will fill in for Fry, at the Grand Slam’s National in Newfoundland Dec. 11-16.
Kennedy was asked to play in that event as well but didn’t want to push things with his hip or get in the way of his commitments to both Curling Canada and his family.
While he hasn’t ruled out a return to the high-level game in the future — he says it’s 50-50 right now — Kennedy definitely can see himself becoming a full-time coach at some point.
“I’ve just been so fortunate to have learned from such great people that I feel if I don’t give back then I’d be doing our sport a disservice,” Kennedy said.
“I want to help Canadian teams. The international world is catching up to us and I want to see Canada on the podium as much as possible — so if I can help in that context, I definitely will.
“I understand why Canadian coaches do go to other countries. I understand how important it is for the growth of the game internationally. I get all of that and I’ve even been a part of that, spending some time with other countries, but if I was to focus my coaching career, I would like it to be with those top Canadian teams because I think I have something to provide for them just in terms of experience.”
As for the situation with Fry, who was fined $1,000 by the World Curling Tour for showing up drunk for a match in Red Deer, breaking several brooms and causing damage in the locker-room, Kennedy said it is a lesson for all curlers.
“I’m certainly not condoning the actions, but we’re all human and we’ve all made mistakes,” Kennedy said.
“I think what it is, is a really good learning lesson for all curlers, just to know that we now play this game on a world stage and there are a lot of eyes on us everywhere we go. Especially when you have the word “Olympian” attached to your name, you really have to be careful. You only fail if you fail to learn from it, so hopefully everyone in the curling world learns.”