EDMONTON – Some of the top rinks from the country’s LGBTQ community are facing off in Edmonton this weekend, for the 2014 Canadian Gay Curling Championships.
Ten gay curling leagues from eight cities across Canada will be taking part in the bonspiel, which is being held at the Granite Curling Club.
While all about curling, the event is also about breaking down barriers and sweeping away stereotypes.
“The stigma is very much, if you are a homosexual that you don’t play sports, that you can’t be a jock, per say. And I think a lot of it is starting to break through and people are realizing that anyone can play sports, it doesn’t matter who you are,” said Colin Rechlo, one of the bonspiel’s organizers.
Two-time reigning Canadian Gay Curling Champion Steven Schneider, who skips for a team from Vancouver, says the weekend is also a great opportunity for teams to come together and celebrate. He curls in other leagues and says he’s never hidden his sexuality.
“I can definitely say I’ve never felt uncomfortable curling regular curling — if you want to call it regular curling. Do we need a label of it? I think it’s just because we’re a group, an identity group; so I think that’s why it’s maybe, if you want to call it, a label. Other than that it’s just a gay national, it brings us all together.”
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And the competition is stiff — there are players with Brier and Scotties experience taking part in the bonspiel. One curler to keep an eye on is Mike Armstrong, who represented Saskatchewan at the 2012 Tim Hortons Brier. Armstrong will play on one of Edmonton’s teams.
“There’s some high-level curlers here. A lot of experience that is untapped in the world,” said Rechlo. “Vancouver is the reigning champion right now, Halifax has some provincial curlers that they’ve sent and… I’m going to say Edmonton.”
Olympic and World Champion curler Marc Kennedy attended the opening ceremony Thursday morning. He threw out the first rock to get the competition underway.
“The people here feel comfortable and they’re happy and there’s no discrimination,” he said. “They’re very passionate and excited about the game of curling, so I’m happy that I could come out and help.”
The event in Edmonton wouldn’t have been possible without the help of a number of local sponsors. A $20,000 grant from the province’s Community Initiatives Program also helped, and was matched by Edmonton’s Curling with Pride League.
“It was crucial,” Rechlo said of the government’s grant. “It was a monumental step in showing that we have support from the government. But having those funds allowed us to be able to put on the events that we did, keeping it relatively low so that we could have curlers from every different walk of life attending.”
“To me it’s about what we’re celebrating here in Alberta — our culture, being inclusive, being respectful and welcoming all to Alberta,” added Alberta’s Minister of Culture, Heather Klimchuk. “It’s also about wellness. Curling is a great sport.”
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The event, now in its 9th year, has really taken off since its inception. Participants hope it will continue to grow, bring people together from coast to coast.
“It’s a social league, good way to meet people, and now we have the national for more competition. So it’s a good thing that’s happening,” said Schneider.
The 2014 Canadian Gay Curling Championships wraps up on Sunday.
For more information about the league, visit Curling with Pride’s website.
With files from Shane Jones, Kevin Jesus, Global News.
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