Canadian curling fans are cheering Red Deer for hosting another successful Scotties Tournament of Hearts in spite of lower attendance numbers.
The nine-day national women’s curling championships closed at the Centrium on Sunday, resulting in a jubilant finish for the Alberta team and heaps of praise for organizers and volunteers.
Among those applauding Red Deer for a job well done was Laura Lochanski, chair of the Canadian Curling Association.
She believes Red Deer is among the top three Canadian communities for hosting the Scotties. The volunteer base is unbelievable here, she said.
“Everyone we have met has gone way beyond expectations,” said Lochanski.
“So you should be really, really proud of what Red Deer has done. Being from Edmonton, I have seen quite a few events hosted there and again, I would say this one here was well outdone compared to any of the other events that we’ve seen hosted.”
Lochanski encouraged Red Deer to vie for the Scotties again.
One nice thing about Red Deer is that it draws people from both Calgary and Edmonton, she added.
Red Deer has proven over and over it can host big events like this, said host committee chairperson Sherri Ryckman.
“There’s really no reason down the line that we wouldn’t want to have another event like this back,” Ryckman said.
A return of snowy conditions over both weekends took a dent out of attendance.
“We were gearing up for 115,000 and we ended up being just shy of 100,000, which put us at fifth-largest attendance in the history of Scotties,” said Ryckman.
“We were probably 600 shy of moving up another rank.”
Red Deer realized the second-highest attendance in the history of the event back in 2004, the first time it hosted. Back then, it drew 112,886 spectators.
As well, there were no extra games needed to break any ties between teams, which caused attendance to fall by about 10,000, said Ryckman.
Ryckman said the event went without a hitch, in large part because of the 528 volunteers who helped ensure athletes, coaches, news media and other visitors, plus the hometown crowd, were happy.
“They are really priceless,” said Ryckman.
“They totally stepped up to the plate... everybody had a smile on their face and I think they made every visitor feel really welcome. The volunteers made it really easy for me. I can’t say enough for our volunteers.”
Among the volunteers was Jean Bryski, a huge curling fan from Yorkton, Sask. She volunteered in security and accreditation.
“I met a bunch of wonderful people and the committee I worked for was fabulous,” said Bryski.
“We were treated really well.”
Wanda Sparrow of Edmonton brought along her two seven-year-old daughters — Paige and Paris — so they could cheer on Alberta team skip Heather Nedohin. Nedohin is Sparrow’s cousin.
Paris and Paige were so excited they were dancing in the stands, which ended up briefly on Centrium’s jumbotron screen.
“I think it’s been top notch,” said Sparrow, regarding the sporting event in Red Deer. “The kids are entertained and it’s been so professionally put together.”
Nedohin’s nine-year-old daughter Halle was excited that thousands of people were cheering her mom on through the weekend.
“It’s been pretty amazing because my mom is getting really big applause and I know it’s for her and her team,” said Halle. “It warms my heart a lot.”
During Sunday’s nail-biting game, Laurie Sivertson of Victoria waved a huge British Columbia flag in support of her 21-year-old daughter Dailene Sivertson, second on the B.C. team.
She praised Red Deer and in particular, the volunteers.
“They answered all our questions and interacted with us all the time,” Sivertson said. “We got to know them. This is my daughter’s first Scotties so this is the first venue for us.”
The Scotties Tournament of Hearts was expected to bring in $10 million to $12 million into the local economy.
Central Alberta rinks and junior curling programs stand to benefit once the proceeds are tabulated from the national tournament.
“We budgeted to make around $250,000 and I think we’re pretty close to being on budget,” said Ryckman. “It’s our way of giving back to the community and some of that will go back to local clubs.”
During Scotties, area curling clubs participated in a Cool Shots competition with shuffleboards and curling rocks. The Innisfail club was the grand prize winner and will receive $5,000.
ltester@www.reddeeradvocate.com