European Curling Display in Ostersund

The 47th European Championships are now underway in Östersund, a city recognized as one of Sweden’s best organizers of sports events.

In total, 26 World Curling Federation member associations are represented at the championships. The vast competition features an A-Division, where teams seek to qualify their nations for the world championships, and a B-Division, with teams striving to qualify their nations for next season’s A-Division.

Ten teams make up both men’s and women’s A-Divisions, while 10 B women’s teams will also compete. There are no less than 16 men’s B-Division squads, divided into two groups.

Canadian TV curling fans are out of luck, in that rights-holder TSN is focussed on the World Cup of soccer, and plans no coverage.

However, the WCF’s Curling Channel, provided by the Recast microtransaction platform, makes live streams available for virtually every draw.

U.S. fans will be able to watch playoff matches late next week on the Olympic Channel.

In the women’s A-Division, Eve Muirhead and other Scotland team members have retired—Muirhead will be commentating for the UK—and a new squad is competing as defending champions, skipped by Rebecca Morrison.

Hosts Sweden are again represented by Anna Hasselborg, but former lead Sofia Mabergs throws third stones while Olympic alternate Johanna Heldin is into the lineup.

Defending world champions Switzerland have a new front end, while the Germany (Daniela Jentsch) and Italy (Stefania Constantini) teams are largely unchanged.

Norway, Latvia and Hungary were all promoted from last year’s B-Division.

The remaining women’s teams are Denmark and Turkey. 

On the men’s A-side, Scotland are defending champions and the Bruce Mouat squad are unchanged, although second Bobby Lammie has been nursing an injury.

Mighty Sweden placed second last year but went on to capture Olympic and world championship gold. However, decorated skip Niklas Edin is on the sideline following his second surgery in six months after an injury during his team’s last Grand Slam appearance. The squad went on to win the event with three players, Gushue-ing Brad Gushue in the process.

The makeshift team then won the next Tour event in Swift Current, Sask. and finished their Canadian tour with a semifinal appearance in Penticton, B.C.

Italy are the reigning European bronze medallists, skipped by Joel Retornaz, who is making his 14th appearance at the Europeans.

Switzerland is a strong first-year team, skipped by Yannick Schwaller, while Spain and Turkey were promoted from last year’s B-Division.

The field also includes Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany and Norway. 

The 16 B-Division men’s teams are:

Group A – England, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Ukraine and Wales;

Group B – Austria, Belgium, France, Hungary, Latvia, Netherlands, Portugal and Slovenia.

Finland and Netherlands were demoted from last season’s A-Division while Ireland, Ukraine, Portugal and Lithuania (in qualification order) were promoted from last season’s C-Division.

Many eyes will be on the Ukraine men’s team, which had a roller-coaster ride to surprise Euro-C silver earlier this year, and who appear along with the Ukraine women’s team in the 2023 Curling Cares Fundraising Calendar.

The 10 B-Division women’s teams are Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, England, Estonia, Finland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain.

Czech Republic and Estonia were demoted from last season’s A-Division, while Belgium, Spain and Finland were promoted from last season’s C-Division event held in Kaunas, Lithuania.