CBS back in curling TV fold
The U.S.-based sponsor of Canada’s annual senior and club-level curling championships is backing a new North American championship pitting Canada versus the United States.
Everest Funeral Concierge, in partnership with CBS Sports Network, Curling Canada and USA Curling, will introduce the Everest North American Curling Club Championships in September of 2024.
The event will pit the Everest Canadian Curling Club Champions against the USA Curling Club Nationals Champions, and crown the men’s and women’s North American Club Champions.
The 2023 U.S. Club Championship was streamed for online viewing“Everest is thrilled to expand our legacy of curling innovation with this event sponsorship,” said Mark Duffey, President and CEO of Everest Funeral Concierge. “Our deep commitment to curling spans nine years of finding new ways to showcase the sport. The Everest North American Curling Club Championships will enable curlers from both Canada and the USA to reach new levels of competition and engage both existing and new curling fans through the CBS Sports Network broadcast event.”
The latest edition of the Everest Canadian Curling Club Championships just finished in Winnipeg, with New Brunswick (women) and Alberta (men) winning the titles.
The 2024 U.S. championship is scheduled for April 2-6 in Fargo, N.D.
The concept behind both the Canadian and U.S. club championships rewards the often unheralded “club curlers”—the weeknight amateurs who play in leagues at their home facilities—with their own national titleshoots.
The newly-crowned Canadian club champions • Curling Canada image“These Championships cater specifically to club-level curlers who may not have the time or resources to compete at the professional level but who have the skills to represent their country at a higher level,” said Danny Lamoureux, interim CEO of Curling Canada. “The event opens an exciting avenue for these curlers to represent their countries and we appreciate Everest’s continued investment in the sport to provide all curlers with the opportunity to shine on a North American stage.”
“Our Club National Championships celebrate both intense competition and the club-based history of our sport,” added Dean Gemmell, the CEO of USA Curling. “Providing our national champions the chance to move on to international play only amplifies the importance of the event, and we are grateful to Everest for creating this opportunity.”
Another USA Curling event—the “5 & Under”—aims to attract very new curlers at an even faster pace.
This will be the CBS network’s first curling venture since their near-disastrous coverage of the 1998 Olympic Winter Games in Nagano.
CBS covered virtually none of the then-Olympic debut sport, offloading coverage to the TNT network. TNT only turned the curling feed on when winter storms forced numerous postponements of alpine skiing.
A news release said the Everest North American Curling Club Championships will air live on CBS Sports Network “in prime time” while Canadian broadcast details will be announced “soon.”