TEAM HOMAN WANTS OLYMPICS TO BE A FAMILY AFFAIR
Canada’s national women’s team is raising funds to get supporters to Pyeongchang
While some teams headed to the Winter Olympics have been struggling, Canada’s Rachel Homan squad has been curling like their hair is on fire here at the Pinty’s Grand Slam Series $250,000 Canadian Open.
Becoming an Olympian is priceless. But it can also be pricey.
It’s certainly an experience you want to share with members of your family.
No problem for Kevin Koe and his Canadian men’s Olympic curling team. The Alberta team held a thank-you function for team sponsors here Monday and were surprised by their sponsors who presented them with $45,000 toward bringing their families to the Olympics with them.
For Homan, it’s a different deal. The Canadian women’s Olympic team heading to Pyeongchang, South Korea, is auctioning off memorabilia and has had a Go Fund Me project started on their behalf to try and get their families to the event.
Homan, Emma Miskew, Joanne Courtney and Lisa Weagle were the first team to qualify Thursday evening for the weekend’s money round and cleared all day Friday to work the house to promote their project and properly prepare for suddendeath bracket games for the big cheques.
The $30,000 first-place money here in the final event prior to Pyeongchang would go a long way to help.
“It’s been really exciting.
It’s taken a little bit, I think, to totally get a handle on what we’ve accomplished,” said the Ottawa product, who has called Edmonton her second home since getting married to former minor league pro hockey player Shawn Germain.
“We’re trying to use this as much as we can and use it as training. There are some great teams here so we expected lots of really good games.”
Well, not so much so far. Homan humbled American Jamie Sinclair 7-2, spanked USA Olympian Nina Roth 7-1 and drew for five in the seventh end to put away Kerri Einerson of Winnipeg 7-3.
On the ice, the emotions of winning the Olympic trials haven’t caused Homan to have a hiccup.
“It was a great to have about a month off between the trials and our next event,” said second Joanne Courtney of Edmonton. “It was great to spend so much time with our family and friends. I think it was what we needed most and now we’re here and I think we’re ready to go for this next push.
“We have a great training plan leading up to the Olympics. We’re going to Japan early to do the training,” she said of Karuizawa, the curling venue for the 1998 Olympics where Saskatchewan’s Sandra Schmirler became the first Canadian to win Olympic gold.
“We won the Scotties last year and we had about two weeks to turn around and get ready for Worlds, so this actually feels like a lot of time for us. I think it’s the ideal timing for us to be able to refocus and make sure we’re treating the Olympics like we want to.
“It’s still a lot of the same teams, the teams that are playing here this week. There will be a lot more distractions but I feel like when we have the pressure it just makes us invest ourselves to be that team that succeeds. I think it’s the ideal setup for us right now.”
Courtney, who won her first junior title in Camrose, said it’s been a real treat to have her parents make the 45-minute drive from Edmonton to watch her play, as well as her sister to come up from Calgary.
Going to Korea is not a matter of throwing a few folks into a family van and being back by midnight.
We won the Scotties last year and we had about two weeks to turn around and get ready for Worlds, so this actually feels like a lot of time for us.
“We have 30 family members making the trip,” Homan said of husbands, parents, brothers and sisters.
The auction involved getting creative.
“We have game-worn jerseys, hockey tickets, spa packages and art work. So many people have been so gracious with what they have offered — certainly far more than we ever could have expected,” she said of the things up for bid.
The team recruited Juno and CCMA award-winning country and western singer Brett Kissel to promote the project with an on-ice curling experience between practices here, wearing full Canadian Olympic Team gear. Kissel has contributed an autographed guitar to the auction.
The Go Fund Me project is building up steam.
“We are really grateful for the generosity of everyone that has donated,” Homan said.
“Going to the Olympics has been a lifelong dream and having the people in our lives to be able to experience this with us in person is something we are very much looking forward to.”
Meanwhile, about that $30,000 first-prize money. The quarterfinals and semifinals are set for Saturday, the final for Sunday.