Canadian Nationals - Day 3 Draw 4 - and then there were two

Full up-to-date results and tables can be found on our website

 Teams waiting for the clocks to begin at the start of play in Draw 4 
photo - Andrew Pizzinato

Four teams began the afternoon with unbeaten records in Draw 4 of the Canadian Nationals, and they played head to head.

British Columbia nosed ahead early against Alberta. A couple of Alberta misses led to a steal of 1 in the 1st and in the second a hit and roll thwarted a potential big end for Alberta and gave BC their second stolen point.

Alberta had to settle for a two that tied the game in the 3rd when Bruno's last rock was heavy, and BC got another big shot when they needed it with a hit and stick facing 3 to earn a single and a 3-2 lead at the break.

Another steal by BC after the break had Alberta coach Andy Jones tweeting "Call the cops." But Bruno Yizek made a cold draw in the 6th to tie the score. With lots of rocks in play in the 7th, BC threw a big weight takeout to nose ahead by 2. In the 8th BC were light on a draw which allowed the Alberta team to tie again. Though Alberta's last stone slide to the back of the house, it stopped just in time to count. Alberta then stole a single in the extra end to remain undefeated.

You want what!! Alberta's Anne Hibberd, Jack Smart and Bridget Wilson
photo - Andrew Pizzinato

Unbeaten Nova Scotia got off to a good start against Manitoba, stealing the first three points but yielded a steal of 2 in the 5th to see the game tied at 4. They reclaimed the lead with a single in the 7th and stole 2 in the 8th to stay tied with Alberta at the top of the table.

 Wayne Ficek NO and Chris Rees ON

photo - Andrew Pizzinato 

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At every Canadian Nationals since Northern Ontario began competing in 2008 they have been in competition with Southern Ontario, as they like to call their cosmopolitan neighbours, for the John McCrae Trophy. Last year in Kelowna it was Bruce Cameron's Ontario team that wrested the trophy from the Ficek rink, graciously handed over by their 2nd Chester Draper.

 Chester Draper had some lost property to retrieve
Photo by Kevin Malinowski

Ontario began with hammer and were 4 ahead before Northern Ontario posted a 3 before the break. Steals in ends 5 and 6 saw Ficek 7-4 but Chris Rees took 2 in the seventh to pull within one, then stole to force an extra end. It wasn't quite enough, as N. Ontario took their single to win 8-7: this year Chester will be taking the trophy back.

Edmonton fans may have been forgiven for wondering what mysterious force has been at work on their Host Team, inflicting last gasp 4's when their favourites have won more ends (21) than any team in the competition.

There must have been groans of "not again" as they outplayed Quebec, recovering from a 4-1 deficit in the 2nd to pull ahead 7-4. But just like the previous two draws, with a win seemingly in hand, they gave up another 4 to fall behind 8-7. Today however, Hosts rallied with a 2 in the final end to secure their second win and leave Quebec still looking for their first.

Carl Marquis and his long stick
 photo - Andrew Pizzinato

Saskatchewan finally got into the win column, handing Newfoundland another double digit defeat, 10-2.

 Saskatchewan's Terry Hart 
 photo - Andrew Pizzinato

Canadian Stick Curling Championships in Maple Ridge

The Canadian Stick Curling Championships begin today at the Maple Ridge Golden Ears CC. The format is Modified Double Knockout for 4 events – A, B, C, and Consolation - 21 draws of an hour each for teams of two players using only stick delivery. The final is Friday March 25.

Team Canada back end Darryl Neighbour and Jim Armstrong won a stick curling event at the same club last November.

Stick curling rules can be found HERE

Canadian Nationals - Day 2 Draw 3

Full up-to-date results and tables can be found on our website

It was deja vu all over again in the evening Draw 3 at the Canadian nationals in Edmonton, with the locally based Host Team controlling their game against Nova Scotia through seven ends before giving up another game tying 4 in the 8th. Hosts, drawing against 3, came up light with their final stone, allowing Mike Fitzgerald to draw for his fourth point. The extra end was no happier for the local team, as they gave up a steal of two for their second heart-breaking loss of the day.

BC 3rd Frank LaBounty - 6th end against NL
photo - Linda Kirton

Life has not become any easier (yet) for Newfoundland-Labrador who have now played three teams fancied to make the playoffs and given up 31 points. They had a disastrous start against BC, allowing 4 in the first and a series of steals to end the game 10-1.

Quebec are using the longest sticks in the competition
photo - Linda Kirton

Alberta had a tougher game against Quebec than the 6-2 scoreline suggests. Alberta coach Andy Jones described the first end as "sketchy," Bruno taking two with a hit and stick. In the second Jack Smart squeezed his rock past a guard to set up a steal of one, and in the 3rd, Bruno executed a freeze, an unlikely shot without sweeping, to hold Quebec to a single.

In the 4th skip Yizek threw a double take-out against three and managed to score his single. Quebec had a chance to tie the game at 3 after the break, but Ben Lessard's attempted tap over-curled and they scored just one. Alberta then took 2 with the hammer to go ahead 5-2 and added a stolen point in the 7th before running Quebec out of stones. Final score 6-2.

Northern Ontario, noted as a friendly bunch, also wanted it to be known they were also the "biggest, fattest, and oldest."

Mark Wherrett, Wayne Ficek, Denise Miault, Cindy Hoffstrom and Chester Draper
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This evening they were the "meanest," pounding Saskatchewan 11-4 on the back of a steal of 5 in the 4th, to record their first win. skip Ficek admitted to his local paper that the team had not been playing well, but said of their first win; "I think it helps for the confidence for the team and I think we'll go into the game at 1 p.m. today feeling pretty good. Now, with the two losses, it's one game at a time. Let's get the next win and go from there."

Ontario faced Manitoba in a game that was close until the 6th, when Manitoba took their two for a two point lead then stole home for a 9-4 victory that keeps them unbeaten and tied with Alberta, BC and Nova Scotia at the top of the table.

Alberta           3 0
British Columbia  3 0
Manitoba          3 0
Nova Scotia       3 0
Host Team         1 2
Northern Ontario  1 2
Ontario           1 2
NFLD and Labrador 0 3
Quebec            0 3
Saskatchewan      0 3

Canadian Nationals - Day 2 Draw 2

Full results and tables can be found on our website

Alberta scored another 11 points in Draw 2 of the Canadian National Championships in Edmonton, AB, this afternoon. Team Yizek overwhelmed Saskatchewan despite their coach Andy Jones noting that Saskatchewan were hitting everything and trying not to leave rocks in play. Some consolation for Saskatchewan who scored three singles; the game went with hammer for all seven ends.

BC brought the local Alberta Host Team back to earth with a slight bump, by scoring 4 in the 8th to force an extra end, their second in two games. The Hosts had the best of the game through 7, stealing to a healthy lead after seeing BC take 2 in the opening frame. It was a couple of misses in the 8th that allowed BC to come back, and a measure was requested for the fourth point. BC completed the comeback with a steal of a single in the extra end for an 8-7 win.

Head official Linda Kirton educating the media on the finer points of wheelchair play
photo - Lisa Shamchuk

Newfoundland-Labrador were pounded 10-4 by an Ontario rink smarting from yesterday's loss to the Hosts. Ontario raced out to a 10-0 lead before Newfoundland-Labrador settled, posting the last four points on a couple of steals of their own.

Newfoundland-Labrador skip Joanne MacDonald 

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Nova Scotia posted their second win and handed Northern Ontario their second loss 8-1. The game was close up to the break, but settled by five stolen points in the last three ends.

Quebec hung tough against Manitoba but gave up a decisive 3 in the 5th, losing 8-5. They are scoring when they have hammer, but need to improve their defense without hammer if they are to prosper. Manitoba join Alberta, BC and Nova Scotia at the top of the table.

photo Lisa Shamchuk

Volunteers from Belrose High School were wrangling rocks at this afternoon's draw.

Canadian Nationals - Day 1

 And they're off
photo - Kevin Malinowski

Newfoundland-Labrador picked the short straw, facing favourites Alberta in the opening draw of the 2011 Canadian Wheelchair Curling Championships that began this evening in Edmonton. They held Alberta to a single in the first before the wheels fell off and a series of steals saw Alberta post 11 points before conceding a consolation single in the 6th and final end.

Home Host Team Alberta faced Ontario and started strong, scoring one with hammer in the 1st then adding a steal before seeing the game tied at two at the break. They then shocked Ontario with a four and a steal to go ahead 7-2. Ontario attempted a comeback, scoring three in the seventh but the Host Team took the victory 7-5 when they ran Ontario out of rocks in the final end.

Manitoba took a while to get going against Northern Ontario, falling behind 3-1 early before edging ahead 4-3 at the break. The game was decided in the 7th when Ficek's last rock was a little heavy and ran through the curl, allowing a steal of 4 and Manitoba a 9-5 win.

 

NO skip ponders his options in the 4th end against Manitoba
photo - Linda Kirton

Quebec gave up a steal in the opening frame against Nova Scotia but pulled ahead with a three in the second, going into the break with a 4-2 lead. It was short-lived however as Nova Scotia scored the next four points to pull ahead. A single by Quebec in the 7th was not enough to avoid a 6-5 defeat as Nova Scotia ran them out of rocks in the 8th.

Saskatchewan gave defending champions BC all they could handle scoring the first points of the game but not until the third end. An exchange of singles had BC down by two in the 8th. BC skip Cormack had a chance to win in regulation after Saskatchewan's Darwin Bender's last rock chipped a guard, but his wide open draw to the four foot was short and he had to settle for two, forcing an extra.

BC opened the extra end with a stone touching four foot, then guarded after Saskatchewan's early draws were heavy. Their final stone attempted to come through a port but hit a guard and BC ended up stealing two for the 6-4 win.

 BC about to throw final guard of their stone touching 4 foot.

Sask attempt to draw through the port, but crash allowing BC to steal 2

photos - Linda Kirton

You can see line scores and result tables and draw schedule in our Nationals coverage on wheelchaircurling.com

Team Alberta gain a mascot

Team Alberta's Jack Smart, Anne Hibberd, Andy Jones, Bridget Wilson,
Martin Purvis, Bruno Yizek and the team's mascot

Aileen Nielson captures Scottish title

Team Nielson - Scottish Champions 2011

Michael McCreadie, Ian Donaldson, Tom Killin and Aileen Neilson
photo by Laura Morris via the Skip Cottage blog

Aileen Neilson completed a very successful season with a win over her national teammate Gregor Ewan in Sunday's final of the Scottish Wheelchair Curling Championship in Aberdeen. It was sweet revenge for Neilson, who lost 6-5 to Ewan in the British Open final last November.

The current Scottish national side was divided between the two finalists, with Aileen joined by Tom Killin, plus Michael McCreadie and Ian Donaldson. Gregor Ewan played with national teammate Mike McKenzie, plus Jackie Cayton and Jim Gault.

It was a cagey game, with three blanks before Ewan put the first point on the board just before the break. Whatever was in Team Neilson's water bottles, it worked as they returned to score 4 in the 5th then stole 3 more in the 6th on their way to a 7-3 win.

You can find semi-final and final line scores HERE.

The 8th Canadian Nationals ready to roll

photo - Lisa Shamchuk

Edmonton's Jasper Curling Club is ready to showcase the 8th Canadian National Wheelchair Curling Championships. The ice is reported to be fast, about 13 1/2 seconds hog to hog for a t-line draw and with between 3 and four feet of curl.

The rings and lines are true, something that was brought to public attention when BC's Kelly Scott was caught out by an imperfect circle at this year's Scotties.

Games will be 68 minutes, metered using time clocks, with each team allowed two 60 second time-outs, the clock to stop until the coach reaches their team. In an extra end, each team would be allowed one time out.

All teams are mixed gender, rocks are thrown from stationary wheelchairs and placed within 18 inches either side of the centre line at delivery.

Hammer will be decided by a single throw to the button at the end of each team's pre-game practice. This year there's an extra incentive for the thrower, a $1,000 prize donated by R. Vallee Home Rentals to cover the pin. Teams can choose who they want to throw that draw, but every team member must, over the course of the nine round robin games, throw at least once.

The club will be using five sheets so there will be no byes. Each team gets to rotate across each sheet during pre-championship practice with NL, MB, NO, SK and HOST taking first practice  and AB, BC, QC, NL and ON taking second.

After the 2011 Worlds, Team Canada skip Jim Armstrong felt that some teams had progressed to the point that matching rocks made sense. I don't know whether any of the coaches in Edmonton have spent time doing that. You can read an excellent article on curling rocks and how they differ and why that matters HERE.

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The organising committee put on a wine and cheese reception Mayfield Inn and Suites yesterday for the teams.

Head time-keeper Daryl Kirton and Vince Herchmer- Deputy Chief Ice Technician.
photo Linda Kirton

The first draw begins at 7 PM. Full details in our special Nationals section of wheelchaircurling.com

Who's who at the 2011 Canadian Nationals in Edmonton

Ten teams are competing at the 2011 Canadian Wheelchair Curling Championships, starting tomorrow March 21; first draw 7.30PM.

There will be detailed coverage of all the facts and figures on our website

Bookmark the 2011 Wheelchair Nationals website coverage

The path to success at wheelchair curling is not a secret. You need a lead who can put stones in the rings, a second who can hit when necessary, a skip who calls shots that can be made, rather than shots he or she would like to see made, and an open path for your fourth rock thrower's winning draw.

With that in mind here's how I see this Championship shaping up. I've grouped the team into three sections: contenders, hopefuls and long shots. You can tell me how I've got it wrong in the comments.

Contenders: Alberta, BC, Quebec and Ontario

 Team Alberta 2011
 Bruno Yizek, Jack Smart, Anne Hibberd, Bridget Wilson, Martin Purvis
Coach Andy Jones

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Alberta are my (narrow) favourites to make the breakthrough to a gold medal that has eluded them in the six plus years they have been playing together. Their best result has so far been a silver medal in 2009 in a game where Jack Smart's last rock throw came within an inch of beating BC, led by Jim Armstrong.

Last year they lost skip Bruno Yizek to Paralympic duty, but Martin Purvis stepped up at 2nd and won all-star honours as did teammates Bridget Wilson and Anne Hibberd. 

Bruno returns as skip this year and will throw last rocks. Player for player Alberta have as strong a team as any in Edmonton. For three years they worked with newly appointed GB coach Tony Zummack, a role that has passed to Andy Jones. Team Alberta have a genuine five person squad, are a very organised and disciplined team, and with a current Team Canada member skipping may just be the team to break BC's stranglehold on the National title.

Team BC 2011

Gary Cormack. Frank LaBounty, Vince Miele, Alison Duddy
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Last year Gary Cormack skipped a BC Host Team to the national title, defeating Gerry Austgarden's BC provincial champions in the final. This year the provincial championships were held in Kimberley, a location far from where BC's curlers actually lived.

New teams were formed from the players with the resources to travel, and to the surprise of many observers Gary's blend of two players from each of last year's final teams, beat out the favoured Jim Armstrong rink that included Darryl Neighbour, Chris Daw and Jackie Roy - all with Team Canada squad experience.

Gary Cormack won a Paralympic gold medal in Torino in 2006, Frank LaBounty has played in most of the Nationals and is benefiting from the rule change allowing him to use his power chair. Vince Miele has shown similar longevity and Alison Duddy, a relative newcomer at lead, has last year's silver medal experience to build on.

BC's approach to the Nationals has been almost the opposite to Alberta's in that they have not worked together as a team under their own coach. They do have experience though, not only at playing, but winning. Their strengths will be their experience calling a game that suits their players, and while they may not be as strong individually as some other teams, their past record says that yet again they will be tough to beat.

Team Quebec 2011
Benoit Lessard, Carl Marquis, Sébastien Boisvert, Johanne Daly, Denis Grenier
coach Germain Tremblay

My wildcard selection for this year's championship is Quebec. This will be their third trip to the Nationals. Last year three male members of the team left Kelowna in a sulk, early and without their coach's permission. That transgression led to the team relocating to a different club and working with a new, but highly experienced, coach.

The strength of what is still a relatively inexperienced team is their track record as established high performance athletes outside of curling. They have added Sébastien Boisvert, considered a "natural" by coaches I have spoken to, and Germain Tremblay may have had time to instil not only some respect for the conventions of the game, but strategic sense.

If skip Ben Lessard has some early success, he opens against Nova Scotia and Manitoba, that will help his confidence. The team has travelled this season to prepare for the Nationals, and expect to do well, I think with some justification.

 Team Ontario 2011

Chris Rees, Carl Bax, coach Paul Emmett, Alec Denys and Shauna Petrie
coach Paul Emmett

It has taken Ontario skip Chris Rees three years to get back on the national stage after losing the 2008 final to Jim Armstrong's BC. He returns with equally experienced Carl Bax, and a rookie second in Alec Denys, a five time Paralympian at archery. Shauna Petrie rounds out the team who had a tough road to Edmonton, having to beat out five other teams including two previous Ontario champions at their provincials.

Back in 2008 the feeling among opposing coaches was that the way to defeat Ontario was to put lots of granite in the rings and see whether Rees had the physical strength to throw the required hits. I expect this generation of coaches may have  similar notions, though rookie Denys has impressed observers with his hitting. Ontario's prospects may depend on Rees' ability to rely on a draw to win the game.

The hopefuls: Northern Ontario, Manitoba and Nova Scotia

Team Northern Ontario 2011
Wayne Ficek, Mark Wherrett, Chester Draper, Cindy Hoffstrom, Denise Miault
Coach Tom Wherrett 

Northern Ontario were a tie-break away from the playoffs in 2009, but faded to a 3-6 record last year. They bring the same team to Edmonton, knowing that they beat Manitoba twice in pre-championship friendlies.

They are a great team to hang with and I am sure they want to win; though perhaps not with quite the single-minded drive and determination of Wayne Ficek, their skip. This is not a team of established high performance athletes with Paralympic pedigrees, but if they can recapture the consistency that was lacking last year, they have realistic hopes of making the final four.

 Team Manitoba 2011

Chris Sobkowicz, Dennis Thiessen, George Horning, Melissa Lecuyer, Don Kalinsky, coach Rob Lamb

Manitoba have taken bronze from the last three Nationals. This year's team was born out of acrimony, with Dennis Thiessen changing allegiance that resulted in Chris Sobkowicz's rink being declared Manitoba's representative without a provincial championship.

Chris and Dennis have won bronze at the last three Nationals and George Horning is also an experienced curler. Melissa Lecuyer is one of eight rookies at this year's championships. They lost to Northern Ontario this season and while they can count on the experience of their back end, peace and love has never been a hallmark of previous Manitoba teams. If it's possible to want to win too much, this is the team that will suffer.

Team Nova Scotia 2011
Michael Fitzgerald, Laughie Rutt, Trendal Hubley-Bolivar, Debbie Earle
Coach – Glendon McClare

Nova Scotia can beat anyone on their day, but have not so far shown the consistency to string enough wins together to challenge for the podium. Skip Mike Fitzgerald is a shotmaker who has in the past been called on to make too many game saving shots.

This is the same team that gave last year's winners their only loss. They also beat this year's favourites, Alberta, yet later lost to sub-500 teams like Saskatchewan and Quebec. It may be that a nine game round robin stretches this team's stamina.

Long shots: Saskatchewan, Host Team Alberta, Newfoundland-Labrador

Team Saskatchewan  2011
Darwin Bender, Gil Dash, Marie Wright, Terry Hart, Calvin Bird
Coach Lorraine Arguin
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Saskatchewan posted a very respectable 4-5 record last year, but this year are without the experienced Del Huber. Darwin Bender steps up as skip and last year's alternate Terry Hart comes in, significantly at lead.

Saskatchewan has not grown participation over the past three years and while this team is enthusiastic, the question is whether they can improve enough to move up the table.

Team Host Alberta
Cliff Nuspl skip, Mike McMullan, Warren Fleury, Shawna Walsh, Coach Cathy Craig

The CCA had hoped to add a tenth provincial team this year, but both New Brunswick and PEI decided they were not yet ready to compete at the national level. Edmonton as hosts took the tenth spot by coming second to Calgary's Team Yizek in their provincial championship.

Cliff Nuspl has been around a long time, and was named alternate on Team Smart with Bruno Yizek on Team Canada duty last year. He skips a squad that has impressed Cathy Craig, the coach. This will, however, be their first experience not only of play at this level, but of nine games in five days.

They will have a home crowd cheering them on, and the advantage of sleeping in their own beds, but I think they will have done well if at the end of the week they get close to a .500 record.

Team Newfoundland/Labrador
Lanie Woodfine, Felix Green, Coach Leslie Anne Walsh, Darlene Jackman
Joanne MacDonald

While most provinces struggle to get female players, Newfoundland/Labrador field a team with just one male. This is the team skipped by Chris Daw in 2009. When he moved west, Joanne MacDonald stepped up. She struggled as a rookie skip in 2010 and with a year's practice will be looking to improve on that 1-8 record.

"We should make it to the playoffs" - Host Team coach Cathy Craig

Edmonton's Host Team

Cliff Nuspl skip, Mike McMullan, Warren Fleury, Shawna Walsh, Coach Cathy Craig
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Cathy Craig is manager of the Jasper Place CC in Edmonton and the event manager for the Canadian Nationals that begin there on Monday. She is also coaching the Edmonton Host Team, skipped by Cliff Nuspl.

This is Craig's first year coaching a wheelchair team but she sounded confident of their prospects, telling the Edmonton Journal: "We should make it to the playoffs. They're solid. They just have trouble in big games."

The Host team open with games against Ontario and BC and finish against the Calgarian provincial champions.

"Whenever there's a national championship, no matter the sport or the level of play, a national championship is a national championship," Craig told the Edmonton Examiner. "You're representing your province, you're trying to win for the country."

The championship will feature the "Tire Patch", offering live entertainment in the club's lounge on Friday and Saturday night.

The Edmonton Journal reported that Jasper Place agreed to stage this year's Nationals after Brandon MB backed out. It is a huge undertaking, and a good sense of what is involved can be gleaned from this blog entry by Lisa Shamchuck who will be compiling scores and making entries on the CCA's website as well as tweeting on each day's events.

BC's Alison Duddy in the news

[photo - Percy Herbert]

Quesnel resident Alison Duddy tells the Quesnel Cariboo Observer that she's "looking for redemption" after winning a provincial title last year, but losing the national final to a BC Host Team.

This year she and teammate/coach Frank LaBounty join defending champions Gary Cormack and Vince Miele in a joint challenge for gold. “It’s kind of like if you can’t beat them, join them,” Duddytold reporter Percy Herbert.

Her team defeated Jim Armstrong in the BC Provincials to earn their ticket to Edmonton, though she gives full credit to LaBounty for his coaching skill, and to her sponsors for making it possible for her to travel to the Kimberley Provincials.

Read the full profile HERE

BC's Team Canada members get their own day - March 20, 2011

BC's Deputy Premier Kevin Falcon has announced that Sunday March 20 be proclaimed “Ina Forrest, Jim Armstrong, Sonja Gaudet and Darryl Neighbour Day” to celebrate Canada’s Wheelchair curling team as part of a program to recognize British Columbia’s medal-winning athletes from the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

No mention of making omitted Calgarian teammate Bruno Yizek an honarary British Columbian for the purposes of the proclamation.

Team Ontario in the news

Dale Clifford of the Peterborough Examiner interviewed Team Ontario members veteran Carl Bax and rookie Alec Denys, who has been persuaded to add wheelchair curling to his athletic interests alongside his Paralympic level skills in archery.

"Carl tried to get me interested in curling and eventually talked me into it," said Denys with a smile. "Curling isn't like other sports. It's more individual in archery while you are part of a team in curling. It's unique and I enjoy it. But like all sports, a big thing is the mental aspect and you have to stay focused. You can't allow any distractions."

A (non-Canadian) national coach told me recently that his recruitment would focus on athletes with established reputations in other sports. I suspect Denys represents the direction wheelchair curling at the high performance level is headed.
 
Coaches are looking for recruits who have demonstrated the ability to perform at an elite level, feeling that while technique in wheelchair curling is relatively easy to master, the mental toughness, desire, the willingness to sacrifice and dedicate yourself to a specific ahievement goal that marks the elite athlete, is less easy to find.

Read the full article HERE

Scottish Wheelchair Curling Championships this weekend

Eleven teams are competing at the Scottish Wheelchair Curling Championships this weekend in Aberdeen, and new British National Team Coach Tony Zummack is in Scotland watching the action. He is on a scouting visit and also looking at accommodation for a more permanent move which he hopes will be in May.

Tony Zummack with Lynne MacKenzie, the Royal Club's National Coaching Officer
photo courtesy Bob Cowan

The teams played their round robin games from two groups, with the top two teams in each group playing in Sunday's semi-final/final.

After round robin play, Aileen Neilson with World silver medallist teammate Tom Killin, along with Michael McCreadie and Ian Donaldson will face a team skipped by Allan Spence.

Aileen's Prague teammates Gregor Ewan and Michael MacKenzie, with Jim Gault and Jackie Cayton, will face Jim Sellar's team in the other semi-final.

You can see results HERE and also view a large selection of photos from the event on Bob Cowan's Skip Cottage blog.

$1,000 to cover the pin in draw to the button at Nationals

At the Canadian Nationals which begin Monday in Edmonton, hammer for each round robin game will be decided by a draw to the button during the practice ice-time.

R. Vallee Home Rentals has donated $1,000 for the throw that ends closest to the button. If two or more throws cover the pin, the prize will be shared. The second place throw will win $200.

Weekly Poll #11 - Who will make the podium at the Edmonton Nationals?

There have only been two winners of the Canadian National Wheelchair Curling Championships; Team Canada from 2004 to 2006, and British Columbia since then. Will this be the year that national honours leave the West Coast?

BC has lots of experience and a proven track record, plus four players who appeared in last year's final, albeit on opposing teams. Skip Gary Cormack and Vince Miele return from last year's championship team, alongside 2010 silver medallists Frank LaBounty and Alison Duddy. They may be the team to beat.

Alberta field a very experienced team, three of whom won All-Star recognition last year. This year they have Bruno Yizek returning from Team Canada gold medal duty as skip, and having come within an inch of success previously, will be home province favourites.

Ontario are confident that skip Chris Rees can improve on his 2008 silver medal, and had the toughest route to the Championships, competing in a six team field, defeating two past Ontario champions.

Manitoba have made the podium at the previous three Nationals, falling just short of the final but taking home three bronze. Skip Chris Sobkowicz is another very experienced skip who in unlikely to be happy with anything less that a final this year.

Northern Ontario are determined to make up for a disappointing 2010 appearance, Nova Scotia have shown they can beat anybody and are capable of making the podium if they gain some consistency.

Quebec are a much more experienced squad after another year of competition and have travelled as a team to prepare for this year's event. Some early success will be the confidence boost that they have perhaps been lacking in the past.

Saskatchewan and Newfoundland are fielding similar teams to last year and may struggle to improve on past performance. The Edmonton host team, despite the commendable optimism of their coach may just be surprised by the level of play at this championship and will do well to earn a plus record.

But that's just my opinion.

This week's question is which teams will make the 2011 National podium? Choose the three buttons on the right margin of this page that represent your choices, and give your 1-2-3 selection in the comments below.

Last week's poll attracted a good response, with 58% feeling that mixed gender teams are a good idea, with 42% opposed.

Canadian Nationals begin in Edmonton March 21

The 8th Canadian National Wheelchair Curling Championships are due to begin at the Jasper Place CC in Edmonton Alberta on Monday March 21, running through Sunday March 27.

I have begun to receive emails asking whether the website and blog will be covering the event. As of today neither the CCA nor the organisers have contacted me about establishing a permanent record of the daily events as I have been doing since 2006.

National Championships involving 50 plus wheelchairs are expensive and a hassle to organise and I am sure that everyone involved is working hard to make the event itself a success. There is a Championship section on the CCA's website where you can download the draw schedule, and I am told they will also record the scores.

As for coverage here, I will do what I can with whatever information I can gather. You can help.

If you are on a participating team, please send me a team photo, preferably with your coach and in your provincial jackets, and give me the names and positions of the people in the photo. If you don't yet have a photo, at least send me the names and positions of the people on the team. If you can supply a sentence or two of biographical information, so much the better.

If you know someone who is competing, ask them if their team has sent me information.

If you are attending the event. email me any reports and impressions or anything you think may be of interest to a generally well-informed blog and website audience.

If you take photos of the event that you can share, upload them to dropulous.com and email me the link so I can access them. That is a better method than attaching them to an email. Please add names to photos.

The website has a fairly detailed archive of major wheelchair curling events going back to 2006, and with your help the Edmonton Championship can be added to it.

Any sport deserves a permanent record, something that has not always been considered a priority by those organizing it. It is not my record, it is your record. Until someone else steps up, I'll continue to do what I can, with your help.

Weekly poll #10 - Are mixed gender teams a good idea?

Kate Caithness, present President of the World Curling Federation, was the person most responsible for pushing wheelchair curling onto the Paralympic stage.

In 2002 she sold the selection committee on the idea that it was a mixed gender sport, a factor she felt was crucial in their decision to include it in the 2006 Torino Paralympics.

Canada has by and large accepted WCF rules when it comes to Canadian national championships in order that Canada's teams would qualify and not be disadvantaged by preparing under non-WCF rules.

But in Canada the national champions are not allowed, as are able-bodied curlers, to represent their country. That honour is reserved for a team specially selected and trained by the Canadian Curling Association.

Many wheelchair users with experience in disabled services and sports understand that the pool of potential wheelchair athletes is predominantly male, because far more males than females sustain injuries necessitating use of a wheelchair.

Other social and family factors also reduce the number of potential female recruits to wheelchair curling, leading to far fewer teams competing for provincial honours than would otherwise be the case. Team participation at provincial championships are limited to the number of females willing to join a team.

On the other side of the argument is the question whether the women now playing would have had the opportunity to compete had not 25% participation been mandated.

So this week's question is:

Should wheelchair curling championships insist on mixed gender teams?

Choose the button on the right margin of this page which represents your view, and give your reasons in the comments below. And if you think that I have a bias in my presentation of the case, correct it in the comments.

Last week's poll, that did not attract many replies, had over 90% of responders saying they were out on the ice two or more times a week.

Japan's National Championships cancelled

Update - Saturday 11 am

I am now told Japan's National Wheelchair Curling Championships have been cancelled because of the devastation caused by this week's earthquake.

Original post: Japan's National Wheelchair Curling Championships had been scheduled for next weekend in Ninohe, Iwate - one of the areas most devastated by yesterday's earthquake.

Yayoi Mashimo, a friend who lives in Tokyo and had intended to travel north with a photographer to watch the championship, tells me that she is sure the event will have to be re-scheduled if not cancelled. She has been in contact with the Japanese Wheelchair Curling Association and they are trying to gather information. Apparently the damage is so severe in the north that it is hard to gauge what is happening.

Katsuo Ichikawa, Yoji Nakajima, Aki Ogawa and Ayako Saitoh

Our best wishes go out to Yoji Nakajima, Takashi Hidai, Katsuo Ichikawa, Ayako Saitoh and coach Katsuji Uchibori who played in Vancouver a year ago, and Kazuyuki Mochiki, Aki Ogawa and Teruo Moriizumi who competed in the 2010 Qualifying Tournament in Finland last November. We hope they are safe and able to regroup in time for next season's Worlds Qulifying.

Canada's sledge hockey team began an international invitational tournament yesterday in Nagano, a central mountain area, but play was halted. It may resume on Sunday.

Sudbury's Team Daniel dress for success

Steve Daniel skip,Rick Prudhomme 3rd, Sarah Lashbrook 2nd, Dennis Duclos lead

Coach Thomas Matheson and primary sponsor Norm Gervais

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Sudbury skip Steve Daniel tells Laura Young of the Sudbury Star: "It's a belief of mine that in order to play well, you've got to feel like you're a professional ... some of the teams look at our uniforms and say, 'You guys look like you've been doing this for awhile, (like) professional curlers.' "

It seemed to work at the N. Ontario Provincials at the Fort William CC, as the team overcame a late arrival, fire alarms the night before, and two early defeats, to challenge champions Team Ficek in the final.

Daniel, a Beijing Paralympian, and his team all play for Sudbury Rolling Thunder, the local wheelchair basketball team. Sarah Lashbrook was the only female basketball player with the Rolling Thunder.

"We begged and pleaded with her to come out (and she) got us through Saturday. She was probably (my) tournament MVP," Daniel said.

The Sudbury CC has been very supportive, Daniel told Young. "They've really opened their arms to wheelchair curling. They make sure that every time we go there the club is accessible.

"We're very, very thankful for the support. We want to continue to build (wheelchair) curling. Just because we have a competitive team doesn't mean that's the end all and be all of curling. I'd like to see it grow (over the next few years) to a league so that we can have several teams that play for fun on weekend."

For Daniel, all the support, especially from Norm Gervais, owner of MEDIchair Sudbury and the team's major sponsor, meant they could compete. "We had to have all those elements in place in order to be successful. I think everyone is excited to see how we progress in the next few years."

You can read the complete article HERE.