In recognition of Manitoba’s 150th Anniversary, the Manitoba Curling Hall of Fame & Museum (MCHoF&M) has named what it is calling the Most Notable 150 Teams in Manitoba’s long and storied curling history. Click here to see the complete list.
“People have been curling in Manitoba since before we were a province,” says Peter Nicholls, the recently elected President of the MCH0F&M Board of Directors. “Manitoba’s curlers have built a remarkable reputation for the province as home to some of the best to ever play the game. We want to pay tribute to all of the curlers who have built and added to the Manitoba curling legend over the years.”
MCHoF&M Directors and volunteers deliberately steered the discussion away from ‘the Greatest Teams’ toward ‘the Most Notable Teams’ and their accomplishments. Teams such as those skipped by Jeff Stoughton, Jennifer Jones, Connie Laliberte, and Ken Watson no doubt fit in both categories However, focussing on the most notable accomplishments of Manitoba curling teams allows the inclusion of Manitoba’s World Junior Champions and teams such as the Manitoba Deaf teams which earned honours in recent years at the Deaflympics and World Deaf Championships.
There has been no attempt to rank all 150 teams. However, 25 of the most notable teams have been identified and the committee’s ranking of these 25 will be publicized in mid-December. In the meantime, Manitoba curling fans are invited to participate in a People’s Choice ranking of the top 25 – with an opportunity to make ‘wild card’ additions to the list if they don’t happen to agree with the committee’s choices.
Donations to support the efforts of the MCHoF&M to honour Manitoba’s curling heritage are invited in the name of the team of your choice as #1 Most Notable Team in Manitoba curling history. The People’s Choice ranking will be determined by the total donations made in the name of each team. A minimum donation of $10 is suggested and all donations are eligible for a Revenue Canada charitable donation receipt.
The Board of Directors has committed to using the net proceeds of the campaign for both current and future operations. Through the Manitoba Curling Hall of Fame and Museum Endowment Fund at the Winnipeg Foundation, MCHof&M is eligible for a matching contribution which has been committed through the Manitoba Heritage Trust Program.
To ‘cast your vote’, go to canadahelps.org. There you’ll find an opportunity to select and vote for any one of the named 25 teams OR your wild card choice.
The Notable 25 teams in Manitoba Curling History which are included in the voting are:
- Howard Woods 1925-1929 Granite Team: First Manitoba Champion
- Gordon Hudson’s 1928-29 Strathcona Team: First Bac-to-Back Brier Champion
- Ab Gowanlock’s 1934-38 Glenboro Team: First Rural Manitoba Manitoba & Brier Champion
- Ken Watson’s 1942-49 Starthcona Teams: Six Consecutive MCA Bonspiel Grand Aggregates
- Billy Walsh’s 1952 & 1956 Fort Rouge Team: Manitoba and Brier Championships Four Years Apart
- Lily Clark’s 1953-57 Portage Team: First Back-to-Back Manitoba Women’s Champion
- Terry Braunstein’s 1958 Granite Team: High School Team Wins Manitoba, Loses Brier Final
- Ernie Boushy’s 1964-67 Heather Team: Four Consecutive Manitoba Mixed Titles & two Canadians
- Joan Ingram’s 1967-73 Fort Garry Team: Three Manitoba Championships with Three Different Skips
- Don Duguid’s 1970 & 1971 Granite Team: Back-to-Back World Titles Undefeated
- Orest Meleschuk’s 1972 Fort Rouge Team: World Title Makes Three in a Row for Manitoba
- Chris Pidzarko’s 1972-74 Team: Two Canadian Championships in There Years
- Lloyd Gunnlaugson’s 1982-84 Valour Road Team: Three Consecutive Canadian Senior Titles
- Bob Ursel’s 1983-84 Granite Team: First Manitoba Team to Win a World Junior Championship
- Connie Laliberte’s 1984 Fort Rouge Team: First Manitoba Team to Win a World Women’s Championship
- Vic Peters 1992-97 Granite Team: Back-to-Back Manitoba Titles and a Brier Championship
- Connie Laliberte’s 1992-95 Fort Rouge Team: Team Canada at Scotties and Worlds in Brandon
- Kelly MacKenzie’s 1995 Deer Lodge Team: First Manitoba Team to Win a World Junior Women’s Championship
- Kerry Burtnyk’s 1995-2001 Assiniboine Memorial Team: Only Manitoba Team to Win a World Championship at Home in Manitoba
- Jeff Stoughton’s 1999-2006 Charleswood Team: Trials Finalist, Three Manitoba Titles and Brier Champion
- Jeff Stoughton’s 2011-14 Charleswood Team: World Gold and Three Time Manitoba Champion
- Mike McEwen’s 2008-18 Fort Rouge Team: A Decade of Excellence
- Braden Calvert’s 2014-15 Deer Lodge Team: Back-to-Back Canadian Juniors and a World Championship
- Jennifer Jones’ 2005-20 Team: Olympic Gold Medal and So Much More
- Kerri Einarson’s 2020 Gimli Team: Built a Winning Team but Pandemic Shortened Season
For information, media may contact:
Peter Nicholls, MCHoF&M President (204-391-5041) [email protected]
OR Resby Coutts, MCHoF&M Vice-President (204-799-2250) [email protected]
