Reigning gold medalist calls new process to quality for Games ‘time -consuming and difficult’

ROBIN SHORT
The Telegram

Eight months after the Canadian Curling Association released its revamped qualification process for the 2009 Olympic Trials, Brad Gushue is still scratching his head trying to decipher the information.

“I still haven’t gotten it all figured all out yet,” smiled Gushue. “Chris (Schille, Gushue’s second stone) knows it inside out, though. He tells us where we stand after each event. It’s very technical.

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Last Updated: Tuesday, April 10, 2007 | 12:40 PM ET
CBC News

Jamie Korab said he was surprised when he was kicked off the Olympic gold-medal curling team, one year after the rink won gold at the 2006 Olympic games in Torino, Italy.

Korab, former lead, says he had no idea it was coming until skip Brad Gushue told him the news during a team meeting April 4.

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CBC.CA - Torino 2006 - Curling - Headlines - Gushue wins curling gold

Last Updated: Fri Feb 24 16:08:46 EST 2006
CBC Sports

Brad Gushue used steady play and one spectacular end to win Canada’s first-ever Olympic gold medal in men’s curling.

The 25-year-old skip and his St. John’s-based rink of third Mark Nichols, second Russ Howard and lead Jamie Korab scored six in the sixth end to propel themselves to a 10-4 win over Finland in eight ends in the gold medal game on Friday in Pinerolo, Italy.

Clinging to a 4-3 lead going into the sixth, Canada got a key takeout from Nichols, who executed a dazzling run-back with his first stone.

Nichols, who curled a brilliant 97 per cent, converted another solid takeout with his second stone, one of several clutch shots the Canadian third made in the game.

Canada then caught a break when Finnish skip Markku Uusipaavalniemi rubbed a guard with his final stone of the end, leaving Gushue a free draw for seven. Gushue sailed his stone through the house and had to settle for six, but the game was essentially over at that point.

“I knew when (Uusipaavalniemi) missed the last shot that it was over and I had trouble composing myself,” Gushue later told CBC Sports.

Immediately after the win, Gushue was handed a phone to speak to his mother, Maureen, who underwent chemotherapy a few weeks ago and was unable to travel to Italy.

A sobbing Gushue had trouble replying when asked what she had said.

“She’s proud and I’m proud of the guys,” he told CBC Sports.

The win gave Canada its second-ever Olympic curling gold medal. The women’s team led by the late Sandra Schmirler finished first at the 1998 Nagano Games, where curling became an official medal sport.

It was also the second medal for Canadian curlers at the Torino Games. On Thursday, Shannon Kleibrink’s Calgary rink captured bronze in women’s curling with a convincing 11-5 victory over Norway’s Dordi Nordby, also in eight ends.

Team Gushue’s win brought Canada’s best-ever medal count at the Torino Olympics to 20, including six gold.

Gushue, Nichols and Korab became the first Newfoundlanders to win a medal at the Winter Olympics since Dwayne Norris of St. John’s won silver with Canada’s men’s hockey team at the 1994 Lillehammer Games.
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“Chris” will be watching Team Canada Men’s Final GOLD Match later this morning (17:30 local torino time) IN ATTENDENCE at Pinerolo Palaghiaccio and uploading pictures at the Splash Blog or www.splashblog.com/curling/ for those reading in your RSS feeds … I know I’ll be checking this site often while I am live blogging at “the other site”.

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As I mentioned on a preliminary post, I was live blogging on this site … and it was too hard to do both … Here are the final results though..

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Live Blogging .. as I watch the Team Canada game on TSN .. .. feel free to hit refresh to get new results! I am updating between ends

UPDATE: I AM CONTINUING THE LIVE BLOGGING AT ANOTHER LOCATION NOW. PLEASE CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINK ==> http://LightTheTorch.net ..

United States vs Canada

END 1 - USA 1, CAN 0
END 2 - USA 1, CAN 2

Finland vs Great Britain

END 1 - FIN 0, GBR 0
END 2 - FIN 1, GBR 0

~~~~ Tidbits while I am Live Blogging ~~~~~

Team Canada and Team USA Game
* End 2 - Lots of stones in the house! I like it! After Brad Gushue’s 1st throw, there is 9 stones in the house, with Canada counting 2 .. back and forth .. and finally - last stone … takes 2!
* End 1 - Canada with 4 in the house, Pete Fenson does a raise to one of his own to take 1 ..

CAN vs USA playing on Sheet B
* Earlier, Team Canada women were playing on Sheet D having some problems with the curling or lack of it on one side of the center but the men are playing on the same ice that the women’s NOR vs SWE was playing on .. sheet B ice looks good

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