2006 Games - Drinking with their enemies
edmontonsun.com - 2006 Games - Drinking with their enemies
Canadians learn to mingle with foes after curling bonspiel in Europe
By ERIC FRANCIS, CALGARY SUN
TURIN, Italy — Those who think drinking and curling don’t necessarily go together at the Olympic level should guess again.
In an effort to better acquaint themselves with European curling and culture, Olympic preparations for Shannon Kleibrink’s Calgary rink included a recent bonspiel in Switzerland, where they raised a glass with seven of the ten teams they’ll face here.
“One of the European traditions that was hard for us was sitting down and having a drink with the other team after the game,” laughed second Glenys Bakker, a High River mother of two currently currently on maternity leave.
“They have tables in the lounge reserved with your sheet number on it. We didn’t know at first, so I think they thought we were being rude,” added Kleibrink, 37, a Saskatchewan native who now calls Okotoks home.
“They came over and told us and we joined them.”
With seven games in two days, it’s easy to see how the foursome had a hard time staying, um, focused.
And with every win, it cost them a few more euros.
WINNERS BUY
“The tradition is that the winners buy the losers a round,” smiled lead Christine Keshen, 27, an Invermere product who lives in Calgary.
“It’s an awesome tradition because if you lose, at least you get a free beer out of it.”
That’s not to say things got messy, as the foursome didn’t have to remind one another they were there to get a feel for what the Olympics would be like.
While Kleibrink and Bakker partook in the revelry, Keshen, for one, is a fitness freak who says she’d would rather jog 10 km than pick up a pint.
“You may see me with a beer in my hand but it’s followed by four waters,” added third Amy Nixon, 28, who said the early January trip that also took them to Italy to see the Olympic curling venue and lodgings was truly an eye-opener.
“The European teams are in a different environment, like seeing them high-five when the other team misses a shot.”
After marching into Friday night’s opening ceremony, the Calgary quartet moved from the athletes village to Pinerolo, 30 km outside Turin.
TEST THE ICE
Settling into their housing near the Pinerolo Palaghiaccio rink, they got a chance to test the ice for the first time yesterday, with pleasing results.
“It’s great - it’s just what we were hoping for,” said Kleibrink, who curls out of the Calgary Winter Club.
“There’s not much curl and, being from Alberta, that’s what we like. When we travel east to play in Canada the ice seems very bendy and we’ve had to get used to that.”
Despite coming off a disappointing showing at the recent Canada Cup and being Olympic rookies with little international experience, the wide-eyed Canadian crew starts the tourney tomorrow as one of the favourites with Switzerland, Norway and a modified defending champion team from Great Britain.
Annette Norberg’s world championship Swedish rink is also a favourite and has drawn plenty of attention for appearing in a heavy medal video with Swedish rockers Hammerfall.
Canada’s Kelley Law finished third in Salt Lake City after Sandra Shmirler won gold in Nagano where the first Olympic curling medals were handed out.
“The whole rest of this trip is a mystery to me,” said Bakker, 43, whose team continues to work with its psychologist here.
“I know we’re going to win gold but the rest is an unknown adventure.”
An adventure that won’t include any more post-game Pilsners until after the final.
Copyright © 2006, Canoe Inc. All rights reserved