The old saying goes, “all good things must come to end,” and Monday was that day for Team Jennifer Jones.
Just 48 hours after lead Dawn McEwen announced her retirement, Team Jones issued a statement on their team Twitter account that they will be going their different directions at the end of the season.
Jones originally formed the team 17 years ago, but the St. Vital rink saw changes at every position over the years except for skip.
The team played with Jones, Kaitlyn Lawes, Jocelyn Peterman and McEwen this season with Lisa Weagle occasionally filling in as an alternate.
The announcement comes after they failed to medal at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games, but Jones said it had no bearing on this decision.
“There’s a lot of changes in our personal lives and just kinda everybody is in a different location,” Jones said. “It just seemed to make sense that this was kinda the time to say that this chapter of our curling career was ending.
“I think this is the right decision for this team. We all kinda got together and decided it was kinda the right path for us to take, but it’s still a sad day for sure. The girls are definitely feel like family to me, and friendships that will last a lifetime.”
Their crowning achievement was winning an Olympic gold medal at the 2014 games in Sochi. But after forming in 2005, they also won seven Manitoba Scotties titles, six national Scotties championships, and two World Championships.
Despite being 47 years old, Jones isn’t saying the word retirement. She’s still contemplating her future, but the plan right now is to keep playing.
“I think I’m going to take the next couple of days to really reflect on that,” said Jones. “I still love to play. I still love to try to get better. I love to practice. I just love the feeling of being out there, and still feel like I’m getting better.
“So, I think as long as all those things are happening then I think that would be the way I would lean — is to keep playing until that goes away, I guess.”