On Wednesday, Curling Canada announced a new process for how teams will qualifiy for the Olympic Trials. There has been some confusion, so hopefully this clarifies this a little.
What was the announcement?
Curling Canada announced a new qualification event that will take place in the fall.
So the current schedule is:
New Olympic Qualification Event (Pre-Pre-Trials) - early fall (dates & location TBD)
Pre-Trials (October 26-31, location TBD)
Olympic Trials (Nov. 20-28, Saskatoon)
Why do they need a new event?
There are multiple ways teams normally qualify for the Olympic Trials. Here is how teams would have qualified for the 9-team field
2019 Canada Cup Winner
2020 Canada Cup Winner
2020 Scotties/Brier Winners
2021 Scotties/Brier Winner
Highest 2-year CTRS team (2019-20, 2020-21 seasons)
Next Highest 2-year CTRS team (2019-20, 2020-21 seasons)
Highest CTRS team (2020-21 season)
Pre-Trials Qualifier
Pre-Trials Qualifier
If there is a team that would qualify twice under these criteria (a team wins both the Canada Cup and Scotties, for instance) the spot goes to the next highest CTRS team.
Why change now?
With no competitive season this year, teams haven’t been able to earn CTRS points.
Who had already qualified for the Olympic Trials?
On the women’s side, Rachel Homan (2019 Canada Cup) and Kerri Einarson (2020 Scotties) had qualified.
On the men’s side, John Epping (2019 Canada Cup) and Brad Gushue (2020 Brier) had qualified.
Curling Canada also announced that Tracy Fleury, Jennifer Jones, Brad Jacobs, Brendan Bottcher, and Kevin Koe have qualified based on 2018-19 and 2019-20 CTRS points.
This means there 5 spots in the women’s field and 4 spots in the men’s field left to fill.
Why not just use the Pre-Trials to fill the rest of the spots?
Because Curling Canada doesn’t want to get yelled at.
Really?
Pretty much. Teams that played a lot on tour 2019-20 and were hoping to do the same in 2020-21 to secure a berth into the Trials on points don’t want to go to a last chance qualifier. With the existing system, Curling Canada wants to prioritize playing on Tour and reward teams that are successful throughout the season. Having everyone go to a last chance qualifier shifts the balance and increases the opportunity for teams that don’t play as much.
What is the new event?
We’re calling it the Pre-Pre-Trials. This replaces the berths in the Trials that come from CTRS points.
Who will play in the event?
Curling Canada is using a combination of CTRS points and World Rankings to determine the field. But these teams will be in the field.
Women’s Teams: Suzanne Birt, Corryn Brown, Laura Walker, Casey Scheidegger, Kelsey Rocque
Men’s Teams: Mike McEwen, Jason Gunnlaugson, Glenn Howard, Colton Flasch
How many spots will be available?
3 women’s teams and 2 men’s teams.
Will there still be a Pre-Trials?
Yes. The teams that lose at the Pre-Pre-Trials will be in the Pre-Trials field.
Think of it like the Page Playoff. The Pre-Pre-Trials is the 1-2 game. Winners go straight to the finals, but the loser has to go through the semi-final.
The Pre-Trials will determine the final 2 teams in the Olympic Trials field.
Will the bubble change things?
Maybe. If a team that hasn’t already qualified for the Olympic Trials wins the Scotties or Brier, they will take one of the berths in the Trials field. That will take a spot away from the Pre-Pre-Trials.
For instance, if Sherry Anderson wins the Scotties, she gets a spot in the Olympic Trials and the 5 teams at the Pre-Pre-Trials will compete for 2 spots.
If a team that has qualified for the Pre-Pre-Trials wins the Brier or Scotties, they will no longer play in the Pre-Pre-Trials.
Does this make any sense?
Sort of.
Seriously??
There was no ‘right’ answer here. This is a compromise where Curling Canada is giving tour teams the edge for getting to the Trials, which is the intent of the process. Without a full season, it would be unfair to award all the spots in the Olympic Trials and force everyone else to go to the Pre-Trials, so offering 2 paths to the top teams not yet qualified seems fair.
Will this change?
Maybe? If it’s not possible to host these events, Curling Canada will have to pivot again. For now, though, this is the plan.
Is Canada guaranteed to be in the Olympic field?
No. The World Curling Federation has altered its qualification process for the Olympics. So far, only China (as the host) is guaranteed to be in the field.
The six teams that make the playoffs at the upcoming Men’s and Women’s World Championships qualify for the Olympics. The rest of the field will be filled out through a last chance qualifier in the fall.
What happens if Canada needs to send a representative to play in an Olympic qualifier?
To this point, Curling Canada hasn’t publicly addressed this ity.
Nobody involved in Curling Canada wants this to happen. It would be an angsty summer for Curling Canada if this were to happen. No team would want to play, as it would significantly alter preparations for the Olympic Trials in December. Fortunately for Curling Canada, it’s unlikely that Canada will miss the playoffs, but not impossible. Chelsea Carey’s team missed the playoffs in at the 2019 World Championship. This year’s fields will be strong as all countries want to secure their place in the Beijing 2022 field as soon as possible.
What about mixed doubles?
The mixed doubles Olympic Trials will take place from December 28-January 2.
Since the field is much larger (16 teams), Curling Canada has more wiggle room for the mixed doubles.
4 teams have already qualified:
Rachel Homan/John Morris
Jennifer Jones/Brent Laing
Nancy Martin/Tyrel Griffith
Jocelyn Peterman/Brett Gallant
The 12 remaining teams will come from a combination of this year’s mixed doubles championship, CTRS points, and a Pre-Trials event in December.
Now what?
Wait to see if they can pull off the bubble.