Adam Casey says few players he has spoken to agree with curling championship changes
A qualifying round for provincial curling teams that have not performed well in the Brier in recent years is making it more difficult to generate interest in the sport, says a prominent P.E.I. curler.
‘This is not a participation event. This is an elite level event.’– Al Cameron, Canadian Curling Association
Adam Casey’s Summerside-based rink is ranked 10th in the country. He still needs to win a provincial tournament for a shot at the Brier, but in previous years winning provincially would have meant advancing to Brier play automatically.
Summerside, P.E.I. curler Adam Casey says the new rules for the Brier are discouraging younger curlers. (Grand Slam of Curling)
This year the P.E.I. team will have to play in a qualifying tournament against Nova Scotia and the Yukon, also poor performers in recent Briers, and Nunavut, which is shooting for the Brier for the first time.
Casey told CBC the new qualifying round is a polarizing concept, with smaller jurisdictions losing out.
CCA director of communications Al Cameron doesn’t agree the change hurts smaller provinces and territories.
“Nova Scotia won the Tim Horton’s Brier as recently as 2003,” said Cameron.
The qualifying round will be held immediately before the Brier itself, which starts Feb. 28 in Calgary. PEI’s men’s provincial championship is in Alberton February 6-10.