CCA plans national mixed doubles championship
CALGARY — Canadian curlers are in the unusual position of playing catchup to the rest of the world in the rapidly growing discipline of mixed doubles.
But the Canadian Curling Association hopes to deal with that problem as early as this year by introducing a national mixed doubles championship, and making it an attractive option for the country’s top players.
It’s expected that the championship will be put on the table for discussion with member associations at the CCA’S annual national meetings in June, with a goal of introducing a championship in late August or early September to produce a Canadian entry for the 2013 world mixed doubles championship.
A national mixed doubles championship would have no impact on the traditional Canadian mixed team championship; in fact, the winning team at the mixed nationals could receive two entries into the following season’s mixed doubles nationals, suggested CCA high performance director Gerry Peckham.
But it’s obvious that the current format of deciding Canada’s rep for the world mixed doubles — two players from the reigning Canadian mixed team champion earn that right — is not working, based on a single bronze medal in four previous world championships. Dean Hicke and Chantelle Eberle of Regina will wear Canadian colours at the world championship later this month in Turkey.
“It’s obvious now that mixed doubles is here to stay, and it’s obvious that the majority of curling nations take it very seriously and train for it, and it’s potentially going to make its way into the Olympic schedule,” said Peckham.
“IT’S OBVIOUS NOW THAT MIXED DOUBLES IS HERE
TO STAY.” GERRY PECKHAM
“So for all those reasons, we need to align ourselves with all these probabilities and run an appropriate selection protocol. Nearly every nation in the WCF has embraced mixed doubles as it currently exists. And they’re getting dramatically better at it.”
Canada, though, is not. Mixed curling in Canada is a non-starter with most competitive teams because its national championship is during the heart of the cashspiel season, and few teams are willing to sacrifice the opportunity to play for Olympic qualifying points to play mixed.
But the proposed mixed doubles nationals would take place before the cash season heats up, and would be played over the course of a weekend.
And where Alberta teams have to play a regional and provincial playdown just to qualify for the mixed team nationals, a mixed doubles nationals field would be determined based on Canadian Team Ranking System points, meaning no qualifying events would be necessary.
“Throughout my career, I’ve tried to play the mixed playdowns six times, and there’s always been a scheduling snag,” said 2010 Olympic gold medallist John Morris. “So I think it’s great if it’s a one-weekend event, and it’ll probably be one of the most fun bonspiels of the year.
“If this is going to be an Olympic sport, and it sounds like it’s on its way, then let’s get on board. I’ve played it twice (at Continental Cups) and had a blast both times, and I can’t wait to play again.”
Morris wouldn’t confirm a potential playing partner, but it’s believed he and Kaitlyn Lawes have something lined up. But there are some other intriguing top-ranked combos out there — notably newly crowned world champ Wayne Middaugh and his wife Sherry, Scotties champ Heather Nedohin and husband Dave, and the engaged Dawn Askin and Mike Mcewen.
“We’ve chatted about it, and I could see it being a possibility,” said Askin, the lead for Jennifer Jones’s team. “It would be interesting. But I think we could handle a weekend and not kill each other.”