OLYMPICS-BOUND HOMAN RINK GETS A HOMETOWN SEND-OFF
Ottawa foursome edges Calgary’s Carey 6-5 in the Roar of the Rings women’s final
Kevin Koe, a two-time world champion and a three-time Brier winner, can add Olympian to his lengthy list of accomplishments.
Koe and his Calgary teammates Mark Kennedy, Brent Laing and Ben Hebert beat Winnipeg ’s Mike McEwen 7-6 in the final of the Canadian Olympic curling trials Sunday at the Canadian Tire Centre.
They played a tremendous game in the final, just as they did while going 7-1 in the round robin, and needed everything they could muster against a tough McEwen team.
Koe had to make a draw against two McEwen rocks in the 10th end to secure the win. He needed all three of his sweepers working their hardest to get it there.
The foursome will represent Canada at the Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, from Feb. 9 to 25.
It will be the second trip to the Olympics for Kennedy and Hebert, who won gold medals in 2010 with the Kevin Martin team. However, it’s the first Olympic appearance for Koe, who won world championships in 2016 and 2010, and Laing, who has three world titles — 2016 with Koe, and 2012 and 2007 with Glenn Howard.
Both teams exchanged great shots in the first end as Koe came out and got aggressive in pursuit of an early score. McEwen twice had to skinny guards to make takeouts and he forced Koe into drawing to the four-foot for one.
That was about as good a start as McEwen could hope for. Koe entered the game with a record of 21-2 when he has hammer in the first end this season.
Hebert played two perfect tick shots to open the ninth, clearing guards off the centre line. That kept the line clear to the four-foot and Koe took full advantage, drawing his last one into perfect position to book a trip to the Olympics. The scenario played out perfectly for Rachel Homan, and she wasn’t about to let the oncein-a-lifetime opportunity go to waste.
The 28-year-old Ottawa skip punched a ticket to the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, on Sunday afternoon with a 6-5 victory over Calgary’s Cheslea Carey in front of a boisterous hometown crowd at the Canadian Tire Centre.
With the Canadian Olympic curling trials in her backyard in Kanata, Homan proved once again to be one of the finest players in the world, going 7-1 in the round robin, beating 2014 Olympic champion Jennifer Jones in the semifinal and then capping off a great week with the win over Carey.
“It’s something I could never have even dreamt of when I was little,” an emotional Homan said shortly after getting presented with her Team Canada jacket. “In our hometown, we couldn’t have written a better story, and we can’t wait to represent Canada in PyeongChang.”
Just as Jones did in 2013 in Winnipeg, Homan, third Emma Miskew, second Joanne Courtney and lead Lisa Weagle were able to bask in the glory of their win before an adoring crowd.
When Carey missed on a double attempt to tie the game in the 10th end, Homan and her teammates came together in an embrace and held it for a good 30 seconds.
“You can always imagine, but you never think it’s going to be reality,” Miskew said through tears. “I think that’s why Rachel and I were in just utter shock and happiness at the end. We just needed to take that time for the two of us because we’ve grown up together and she’s like my sister.
“We’ve battled and we’ve tried so hard to be the best and it’s just a testament to how amazing she is at what she does.”
The foursome will compete in South Korea from Feb. 9 to 25 and will be the clear-cut gold medal favourites.
They are the reigning world champions, but they won’t get a chance to defend that title. They will not compete in the Scotties Tournament of Hearts as Team Canada in January. Instead, Winnipeg’s Michelle Englot, who lost the Canadian final to Homan last year, will form Team Canada.
It was a devastating loss for Carey, her only defeat of the entire tournament.
She struggled out of the gate Sunday and couldn’t completely recover. She whiffed on an attempt to blank the first end and gave up a steal of one. She gave up a steal again in the second and trailed the rest of the way.
“How do you think I’m feeling? That’s awful,” the 33-yearold Calgary-based skip said. “It’s a winner-take-all game and you want to be on the right side of it. One team’s going home upset and one team’s going home happy. We knew that coming in, so we left everything we had out there and that’s all we can do.”
Homan is sometimes thought of as being a bit robotic, partly because she is a pure terminator of a shooter, but also because she keeps her personality guarded. But her emotions were on full display on this day.
“Just a crazy emotional day,” she said. “I’ll never forget it. It’s something I’m going to remember forever and really enjoy this moment and celebrate.”
Homan’s only loss of the Olympic trials came in the opening draw last Saturday against Carey. Her team got better and better as the week went on and she proved once again to be the finest hitter in the women’s game.
“It was an insanely hard field out there,” Homan said. “Everyone was phenomenal all week and we needed every shot to win in every game.
“They all went to 10 ends. We really feel like this week has really prepared us for going into PyeongChang.”
Canada has won two Olympic gold medals in women’s curling — Jones in 2014 and Sandra Schmirler in 1998. Homan will have a good shot of making it three.
“It’s just shock and happiness,” Miskew said. “We didn’t want to even think about the Olympics until the game was over, but right now it’s just complete happiness.”
You can always imagine, but you never think it’s going to be reality … That’s why Rachel and I were in just utter shock and happiness at the end.