Drop the golf clubs, the Roaring Game is back
And just like that, the new 2024-25 curling season has started.
(Did the previous one really ever end?)
The traditional annual World Curling Tour kickoff is the Baden Masters in Switzerland. The 2024 edition is now underway with selected games streaming on YouTube.
It’s a men’s tour stop, with Italy’s Joel Retornaz the defending champion. The Italians are now underway in their first match against the Marc Pfister team, formerly of Switzerland and now representing the Philippines.
The 20-team field includes Sweden’s Niklas Edin, Switzerland’s Yannick Schwaller and five powerful Scottish squads including Bruce Mouat.
Two entries will be battling jet lag: USA’s Korey Dropkin and Canada’s Jordan Chandler.
Baden used to take place closer to the end of August—and a long time ago, in early September—proving that its start date is creeping ever-earlier into the heat of summer.
In North America, a U.S. special playdown was recently hosted at Chaska, MN. USA Curling combined their annual meeting with various clinics, a Hall of fame induction (Deb McCormick’s 2003 world champions) and a 2025 mixed doubles Olympic pre-trials qualifying shootout.
Ten teams competed with four pairs qualifying for February’s Olympic trials in Lafayette, CO.
Sarah Anderson/Andrew Stopera (8-1), Madison Bear/Aidan Oldenburg (7-2) and Clare Moores/Lance Wheeler (7-2) earned the first three berths.
Taylor Anderson-Heide/Ben Richardson then defeated Lexi Daly/Luc Violette in a playoff for the final spot.
Following Baden, the Euro Super Series takes place in Stirling, Scotland and features women’s teams as well as men’s squads.
A new Korean women’s event starts Aug. 16 at the 2018 Olympic venue in Gangneung. Korea held their annual national championships back in July, with Eun-Ji Gim capturing the women’s title, Jae-beom Lee the men’s crown and Kyeong-ae Kim and Ji-hoon Seong the mixed doubles.
A Japanese tour event has already taken place, with the Ikue Kitazawa and Shinya Abe foursomes taking top spot.
The first Canadian tour events take place Sept. 6-9 in both Edmonton and Oakville, Ont.
Brendan Bottcher, the new coach for Team Rachel Homan (and Homan’s mixed doubles partner) threw his first stones of the new season with a corn broom.
Which we always like to see. Very much, in fact.
