Excitement is surging for the 2024 Pan Continental Curling Championships landing in Lacombe this fall.
"It's an amazing event! We are feeling very lucky we are able to host it on behalf of World Curling, and we are also working with Curling Canada and Curling Alberta to help put it on," said Chantelle Bowman, co-chair of the event with Peter Villers.
The championships - set to run Oct. 27 to Nov. 2 at the Gary Moe Auto Group Sportsplex and the Lacombe Curling Club - serve as a qualifying event for the annual world men’s and women’s championships.
There will be 37 teams from 21 countries outside of Europe playing in two divisions, according to a release.
The A Division teams will vie for positions in the 2025 Women’s and Men’s World Championships.
The top two teams in the B Division earn the right to move up to A Division for the next Pan Continental while the bottom two A teams move down.
"There are many parties working together to make this event happen, and to bring it to town - including the City of Lacombe as well," Bowman said, adding that organizers are pooling resources when it comes to planning the event, from the contestant side of things to the broadcasting aspects and everything in between.
"We are also working with two main organizers from World Curling now," she said.
Originally, the idea to put in a bid to host was brought to the Lacombe Curling Club by previous ice maker Darren Moulding, an award-winning curling champion in his own right.
The event was held in Canada twice before - in Calgary (2022) and in Kelowna just last year.
Bowman said that Moulding attended the Kelowna event and felt Lacombe would be an amazing spot as a host community.
"With his connections with World Curling, he started talking to (stakeholders). Along with another committee, he put in a bid for Lacombe to be considered," she explained.
"World Curling was very excited, and we ended up getting the final bid to host."
Team Rachel Homan of Ottawa and Team Brad Gushue of St. John’s will represent Canada at the championships. Both teams earned their berths by winning the 2024 Scotties Tournament of Hearts and 2024 Montana’s Brier respectively.
And as the host nation of the 2025 BKT Tires World Men’s Curling Championship earlier this year in Moose Jaw, Sask., Canada’s spot is guaranteed.
For Bowman, seeing the championships come to Lacombe is also personally thrilling.
"I have curled most of my life. I took a few years' break, but I just finished my second season with the Lacombe Curling Club. I love the sport of curling because it can be both competitive or non-competitive," she explained.
"It's the whole social dynamic of it, too. You get to work with others, but you are also always having to work on yourself in it. It's both an individual and a team sport with a lot of strategy and skill mixed into it as well."
Meanwhile, she is excited to encourage community members and groups to come onboard in one of several volunteering or partnership capacities.
Bowman noted there will be opportunities for local clubs to help out in various capacities and perhaps use those opportunities as fundraisers for their organizations.
"There are different partnership options," she said.
"Ultimately, people can enjoy the sport of curling whether it's looking at the strategies the teams are using on the ice, or just being there and also socializing with friends and taking in the whole atmosphere.
"We have a fun banquet that we are also starting to plan - it's for the public, and for the teams - where people can come to mix and mingle with the players and people from all over as well."
Help is also needed in a variety of ways from leadership of committees to event set-up, even some construction, and lots of tasks during the event.
For more about volunteer opportunities, head to lacombecurling.com. Sponsorship opportunities and ticket information can also be found on the website.
