The idea that the Home Hardware Canada Cup might lead to other curling events is not a far-fetched one, but it isn’t something that’s going to happen overnight.
Or, likely, for even a year.
“Our first baseline was hosting the Tankard to see if it was something we could even do,” said event co-chair Helen Fornwald. “Once we achieved that, we were asked by Curling Canada to see if we could host the Home Hardware Canada Cup.”
Fornwald said they will sit down as a committee and evaluate some of the details and things they learned during this experience.
“I think the committee has already said to me that we need a year off,” Fornwald said. “Two major events in one year is a major undertaking for any community and I have to agree with them.
“Over the course of the next year we’ll be seeing what we can bring in next.”
Some of the big annual cash events on the curling calendar that are coming on the horizon include the following Grand Slam events:
• The Masters, which was held this year in Truro, N.S. in the Rath Eastlink Community Centre with a hockey capacity of 3,100 and had a big international field.
• The Tour Challenge, which took place earlier this year at Thunder Bay’s Tournament Centre, a twin pad mostly hockey facility with only about 1,000 seats.
• The National, which took place at Sault Ste. Marie’s Essar Centre last year. That’s a hockey facility with nearly 5,000 seats.
• The Canadian Open, which took place at Camrose’s Encana Arena, a 2,500-seat rink, earlier this year.
• The Players’ Championship, which nestled into Toronto’s Mattamy Athletic Centre of nearly 3,000 seats last year.
• And the Champions Cup, which was at the WinSport Arena in Calgary in April. That rink seats less than 4,000 people.
With a rested committee, very few Grand Slam events would seem to be out of the wheelhouse for something Estevan could host in the future.
The 2019 women’s world curling championship will be at the Silkeborg Sportscenter in Silkeborg, Denmark – capacity 700. This year, the event was in North Bay Memorial Gardens, capacity 4,246. Somewhere in that range could fit Estevan.
Other events, like the Tim Hortons Brier, Roar of the Rings and even the Scotties Tournament of Hearts may be too big for Estevan. The 2020 Scotties was also recently awarded to Moose Jaw’s Mosaic Place, so it would be extremely unlikely to have Saskatchewan host again before 2025.
