(by Graham Lloyd)
The 2014 Scotties Tournament of Hearts will be hosted by Montreal for the first time in the 32-year history of the event, Feb. 1-9 at the Maurice Richard Arena. The Canadian women’s curling championship was contested in the city once before, in 1979, prior to taking on the Scotties title.
Twelve of the top teams in the country will compete for the national title, but at this stage, only two have booked tickets to Montreal. Rachel Homan defeated four-time Scotties winner Jennifer Jones in the championship final last year in Kingston, Ont., earning the right to wear Team Canada colours.
Sarah Koltun earned the Yukon/Northwest Territories berth Jan. 6 with a victory over Kerry Galusha.
By mid-January, provincial and territorial playdowns will have decided the other 10 representatives for the Montreal Scotties.
The Ontario championship, taking place Jan. 5-12, features two teams that competed in the 2013 Capital One Road to the Roar Pre-Trial event last November – Tracy Horgan and Cathy Auld – as well as Sherry Middaugh who lost the gold-medal match to Jennifer Jones at the 2013 Tim Hortons Roar of the Rings Canadian Curling Trials.
In British Columbia, Kelly Scott will be vying for a ninth appearance at the Scotties during the provincial playdowns, Jan. 6-12. Scott is a two-time national women’s champion.
Playdowns in Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, Jan. 7-12, will see the defending champions from both provinces – Suzanne Birt and Mary-Anne Arsenault – seeking another shot at the Scotties championship.
Provincial competitions are underway Jan. 8-12 in Newfoundland/Labrador, New Brunswick, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. The Prairie playdowns feature five of the eight women’s teams from the 2013 Tim Hortons Roar of the Rings in the mix for a trip to the Scotties.
Chelsea Carey will be looking for her first Manitoba title, while in Saskatchewan, Stefanie Lawton will be playing for a third berth in the Scotties. Renée Sonnenberg, Heather Nedohin and Val Sweeting will compete in the Alberta playdowns.
The home-province representative will be determined at the Quebec provincial playdowns Jan. 12-19
Watch for updates on all the qualifiers right here on the Scotties Tournament of Hearts website.
“You Gotta Be There” when the 2014 Scotties Tournament of Hearts comes to Montreal. Reserve your seats today by clicking here.