Olympic gold medal curler Jill Officer writes a twice-monthly blog for Global News.
I’ve played a lot of nail-biting, pressure-packed curling games in my life, but playing the final of the Manitoba provincial championship this past weekend in Winkler was one of the toughest and most nerve-racking games I’ve ever had to play.
Sure we won the semifinal at the Olympics with a pressure-filled draw to the four-foot (really close to the middle of the target for you non-curlers), and we played in the gold medal game at the Olympics with many nervous moments. But playing in this past weekend’s championship final was like nothing I have ever experienced before.
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The reason for my many mixed emotions and nerves before and throughout the game? My 22-year-old niece Kristin MacCuish played on the opposing team in that final game.
So while I know all the big games and big shots in my life have prepared me for future games and shots, this situation was a little different. I had to work a little harder at being mentally prepared for this big game.
Before the game, I was nervous. My tummy was doing flips. My dad has always said, “If you’re not nervous, you’re not ready.” I’ve always believed that. But I just knew this was a little different. Not only was I nervous for me, but I was nervous for Kristin.
Kristin and I have always been pretty close. We’ve always been big supporters of each other’s curling. I remember being stressed watching her play in her first junior provincial final and then feeling completely emotionally drained afterward as they had lost. If that’s how I felt watching her in a provincial final, you could imagine how I was feeling having to play against her in a provincial final!
So while our past experiences have prepared me for big games, I wasn’t sure how prepared I could be for this game. It turns out my past mental preparation and training, mostly courtesy of Winnipeg sports psychologist Cal Botterill, helped me do my absolute best to park my emotions … until after the game, that is.
Our team won the game and the provincial title. For the second year in a row, Kristin and her team of Liz Fyfe, Selena Kaatz and skip Kerri Einarson finished second. But despite our team winning, I broke out in tears when I hugged my niece after the game. And so did she.
But the great thing was, we both went about our business on the ice, focusing on what each of us was there to do. And I’d like to think she felt the same way when I say it was a no-lose situation for either of us and our family. Because no matter what happens on the ice, we are family first off the ice.
READ MORE: Jill’s House blog
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