Consequences to a Curling Fan

 

The end of a quadrennial always means a fleury of activity for curling rosters.  In this case, it also means the end of Team Fleury.  Some people call it "silly season".  It is all about competing in the next Roar of the Rings, trying to get to be Team Canada at the next Olympics.  I usually enjoy speculating with my fellow fanatics.  This year, not so much.  

It has sort of been ruined for me by a certain Third who took some "personal time off" the night before the Olympic Trials and that "personal time" had nothing to do with Covid19.  The same third was cut from another team a couple of years before just before the last two events of the season.  During the Brier, the player was interviewed and would not comment on his "personal time" off other than sometimes bad things happen in life and you just have to shake it off.  

Yes, bad things happen in life.  For example, you get a disease or you get into a car accident or your company shuts down and lays off staff.  All of those things happen and bad things do happen to everyone.  

However, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to connect the dots on this one.  The "personal time" off doesn't have to do with a bad thing happening, it has to do with the result of a bad choice.  He made a bad choice and as a result bad things happened to other people.  If I had to speculate, and this is just speculation, I think there was a legal investigation of some sort.  As a result of the legal investigation, no charges were laid.  It doesn't mean that he was innocent, it means either that the Crown declined to prosecute or potential victims did not want to go further for their own reasons.  

Regardless, this guy could be clearly characterized as a bad apple.  Curling is not immune from having them.  Yes, the majority of curlers are amazing people.  They are generous of spirit and go out of their way to show this.  I have watched too many to count events on tv and I have never gone tearless through a single one.  The personal stories, the triumphs, the team dynamics are all so beautiful that they bring me to tears.  And those are the events I have watched on tv.  I have also been blessed to have watched many events in person.  For those events, the crying is atleast once a day.  Volunteering at the 2018 World Men's Championship in Vegas was one of the best weeks of my life but did I go through the kleenex boxes.  

But, now the situation with this Third has tarnished the sport for me.  Not because he is a bad apple.  I know there is bad apples.  But, because no one has spoken out against him.  He appears to have had no consequences.  His team appeared to welcome him back.  

Curling used to pride itself on sportsmanship and being the gentleman's sport.  Again, I know the vast majority of curlers are exceptional human beings, but this one player taints the rest a little for me.  

It has made me skeptical of everything.  Are the people who are announcing their retirement doing so to save face because they couldn't land on a competitive team?  Are the announcements now really about who is going to take their sponsorships forward into the next year?  Has everyone really known for months what is going to happen?  

Will I still love all things curling?  Well, I am life-time fan and that is not going to change, but, if I am going to be honest, I love it just a little bit less now.  

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