Team Gushue

Welcome Back Team Canada

I would like to post some excerpts of Coach Daryl’s Diary for their last day … If you haven’t been reading his daily diary during the 2006 Winter Olympics, you can still go back and read each day and be treated to great insights of Team Kleibrink over in Torino. I enjoyed looking at the pictures, and all of the commentaries and even the words of the day

Source: http://www.fieldlaw.com/team_kleibrink.html#diary

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Anyone requesting appearance appointments for one or members of the team should contact Paul Webster (Canadian Curling Association) by e-mail.

COACH DARYL’S DIARY (with guests!)

February 26 and 27

Team Kleibrink is home safe and sound in Alberta and British Columbia.

This update covers our last day in Torino (Sunday February 26) and our trip home on Monday February 27.

The hi-lite for Sunday was the Closing Ceremony. Unlike the Opening Ceremony, the athletes from all countries marched in together and in no particular order. This represents the coming together of the nations in the Olympic Spirit.

We had much better seating than we did for the Opening Ceremonies, located immediately behind the main stage. We could see everything quite clear.

It was a spectacular ceremony. See photos attached.

The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Committee was part of the presentation (see the Inukshuk photo). The Olympic flag is on it’s way to Vancouver and will be raised there on Tuesday afternoon!

One of the hi-lites for the athletes is the trading of Olympic Clothing.

Shannon and Sandra traded their jackets with a couple of Chinese Athletes, Glenys traded her jacket with an Italian Athlete, Amy traded her closing ceremony toque for a “volunteer” fleece jacket and Christine did the most trading getting a Swiss vest and lots of other stuff. It was neat to be a part of all this! (see photos attached)

Early Monday morning (7:00 a.m.) we boarded a bus to travel to Milan to catch an Air France flight to Paris. From Paris, it was Air France to Toronto, where Air France, Air Canada and the Toronto Airport Authority helped expedite our gathering of luggage, getting us through customs and putting our luggage on flights to Calgary, Kelowna and Edmonton. Their help was much appreciated!

Shannon, Amy, Glenys and Christine flew Air Canada to Calgary and arrived home to a hero’s celebration at the Calgary International Airport. Their flight was pretty much on time.

Daryl, flew West Jet to Edmonton (leaving an hour and a half late) and arrived home to a smaller celebration of wife Bonnie and 8 colleagues from EBA Engineering Consultants Ltd. who were all decked out in Olympic gear, presented me with my own “Bronze Medal” and a limo ride home with Champagne!

It was a very long day…for me it was in the order of 24 hours of continuous travel to get home.

In closing, the Olympic Diary, let me say on behalf of Team Kleibrink….Thank You to all who have visited the website, sent e-mail to our team e-mail address or individual team members personal e-mail addresses and provided support throughout for us.

There is nothing more uplifting than knowing that those close to you are providing their support through thick and thin! Without you, Team Kleibrink would not likely have achieved the incredible goal of being Olympic Medalists!

We would also like to thank Field Law and Tammy Wiebe for facilitating the Team Kleibrink website and updating the Coach’s Diary on a daily basis. Tammy did this every day including on weekends from her home computer and this is much appreciated!

Mille Grazie!

Arrivedercie!

Coach Daryl (on behalf of Team Kleibrink)

UPDATE: THIS SCORE IS NOW FINAL!

Congratulations Team Canada / Team Gushue!
THANK-YOU GUYS! YOU PLAYED GREAT!

skip - Brad Gushue (aka 4th)
3rd - Mark Nichols
2nd - Russ Howard (real skip)
lead - Jamie Korab
Alternate - Mike Adam

Canada vs Finland

END 1 - FIN 2, CAN 0
END 2 - FIN 2, CAN 2
END 3 - FIN 2, CAN 3
END 4 - FIN 2, CAN 4
END 5 - FIN 3, CAN 4
END 6 - FIN 3, CAN 10
END 7 - FIN 3, CAN 10
END 8 - FIN 4, CAN 10
(concession after 8th ends)

TEAM CANADA WINS GOLD!

FINAL: Canada 10, Finland 4
Results

Here are the stats..

CBC News: N.L. schools to shut early for Olympic curling final

Last Updated Thu, 23 Feb 2006 11:26:45 EST
CBC News

The Newfoundland and Labrador government is closing schools early on Friday so that students can watch the Canadian men’s curling team compete for the gold medal at the Torino Olympics.

* FROM FEB. 22, 2006: Gushue curls into final

Schools across the province will be dismissed at lunchtime, before the St. John’s-based rink skipped by Brad Gushue competes in the Winter Games curling final in Italy, Education Minister Joan Burke said Thursday.

“It’s a historic moment for Newfoundland and Labrador,” she said. “[We] certainly want to make sure that everyone has the opportunity to see the game. It’s exciting for the young people of this province.”

Burke said buses will be ready to take children home early.

Gushue’s rink faces Finland at 1 p.m. NT (12:30 p.m. in most of Labrador and 11:30 a.m. ET).

The game will be carried on CBC Television.

Burke said while schools could have arranged to have children watch the final in the classrooms, buses would have arrived during the final ends.

“School children just can’t walk out of school and declare a holiday,” Burke said. “We have to do that for them.”

FINAL SCORE: Canada 11, Norway 5

Here’s How it went:

END 1 - CAN 4, NOR 0
END 2 - CAN 5, NOR 0
END 3 - CAN 5, NOR 1
END 4 - CAN 5, NOR 2
END 5 - CAN 9, NOR 2
END 6 - CAN 9, NOR 4
END 7 - CAN 11, NOR 4
END 8 - CAN 11, NOR 5
(concession after the 8th end)

CONGRATULATIONS TEAM CANADA WOMEN!

Congratulations Team Kleibrink!
It was great watching you play in the Olympics!

Skip - Shannon Kleibrink
3rd - Amy Nixon
2nd - Glenys Bakker
Lead - Christine Keshen
Alternate - Sandra Jenkins
Coach - Daryl Nixon

That now brings Canada’s Medal count to 18 .. Go Canada Go!

The women’s final GOLD game (Sweden vs Switzerland) will be later today at 17:30 local time (11:30 am ET)

CBC News

CBC.CA - Torino 2006 - Curling - Headlines - Kleibrink reaches curling playoffs

Shannon Kleibrink prevailed 9-8 over Denmark in a tense round-robin finale at Pinerolo. (CP Photo/Andrew Vaughan)

Last Updated: Tue Feb 21 02:20:58 EST 2006
CBC Sports

Canada’s Shannon Kleibrink used a patchwork rink to reach the playoffs in women’s curling at the Torino Olympic Winter Games.

Kleibrink, who curls out of Calgary, needed a clutch shot on last rock in the 10th end to get past Dorthe Holm of Denmark 9-8 and clinch the final berth in the medal round at Pinerolo, located 50 kilometres from Turin.

Canada completed the round-robin in fourth place at 6-3 and will face Switzerland in Wednesday’s semifinals (8 a.m. EST).

“We’re going to have to be a lot better than we were out here tonight,” Kleibrink told CBC Sports. “It was a bit messy out there so we’re gonna go practising tomorrow and come out firing on Wednesday.”

Sweden meets Norway in the other semi.

Amy Nixon’s nagging stomach virus forced Canada to juggle its lineup on Monday, moving Glenys Bakker from second to third and inserting alternate Sandra Jenkins as second.

Denmark grabbed a 2-0 lead in the opening end, but Kleibrink capitalized on a couple of key misses by Holm to earn three on a free draw in the second.

Holm responded in kind in the third but Kleibrink answered right back, drawing to the back of the four-foot for three to lead 6-5 through four.

Kleibrink split the rings in the sixth and stole one when Holm’s final delivery hit but rolled out.

Holm made amends in the seventh, nudging a Canadian rock off the button with a nifty double-raise to score one and trail 7-6.

Canada’s sweepers then brushed Kleibrink’s soft draw far enough to earn a single point in the eighth, but Holm replied with a deuce on an open draw to tie it 8-8 through nine.

with files from CP Online

Copyright © CBC 2006