Organizers pull off struggling national bonspiel

Lionel Chartrand was not sure whether the Canadian Aboriginal Curling Championships would even be held this year.

The national bonspiel had been cancelled in 2013 and it appeared doubtful it would be revived this year.

But following some hurried preparations, organizers did indeed manage to stage the event this year. It was held April 18 to April 20 at Saskatoon’s Granite Curling Club.

Chartrand, a 59-year-old Metis criminal lawyer who lives in Edmonton, is glad the bonspiel was brought back. He skipped a rink to the championship in the men’s category, which featured 26 teams. The nationals also included a women’s division, which attracted six entries.

The Canadian bonspiel featured representatives from Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

Chartrand had previously skipped teams to victories in 2004, 2010 and 2012. He’s obviously thrilled to be called a Canadian champion once again.

“I never get tired of hearing that,” he said.

Chartrand had only registered for the Canadian bonspiel three weeks before it started.

“Everything seemed tentative,” he said. “I had heard it was going to be cancelled.”

Once he received word the event was indeed on, Chartrand then had to find himself some teammates.

His team included brothers Sam and Rod Wuttunee from Saskatchewan’s Red Pheasant First Nation, who played lead and third for the rink, respectively. Saskatoon’s Duane Parker was the second for the winning team.

The Wuttunees and Parker are all Cree.

Chartrand had previously played with his teammates at a bonspiel four years ago.

Despite only practicing together briefly the evening before this year’s nationals began, the Chartrand-skipped entry fared well. The foursome ended up posting a 7-2 record in Saskatoon.
Chartrand was one of the older competitors at the nationals. But he doesn’t believe he was the oldest.

“There were guys with more grey hairs than me,” he said. “And there were guys with less hair than me.”

Chartrand, who has been curling for 41 years, is a member at a pair of Edmonton-based clubs, the Crestwood Curling Club and the Saville Sports Center.

Though he had enjoyed previous success at this event, he was a bit surprised to take top honours once again.

“I didn’t expect to win it,” he said. “I went there with a totally different team. But we had fun and we had a good run.”

Chartrand’s rink also made a bit of money at the event. By winning the championship they were presented with a $4,000 cheque, a figure which was 10 times more than its $400 entry fee.

Karon McGillivary from Manitoba’s Opaskwayak Cree Nation skipped a team to the championship in the women’s division.
McGillivary’s teammates included a pair of other women from her First Nation, lead Norma McLean and third Marie Jebb. McLean and Jebb are sisters.

The winning rink also included Dianne Sergeew, a Métis from Meadow Lake, Sask., who played second for the team.

For McGillivary, this marked the fifth time she has won a championship at the national bonspiel. She had previously skipped two others rinks to titles in the women’s category and she also won a pair of championships in the mixed (two women, two men) division.

The mixed category, however, was not held at this year’s nationals.

McGillivary, who plays out of The Pas Curling Club, was a bit disappointed there were not more participants in the women’s division.

“There used to be 24 ladies teams in the past.”

McGillivary’s rink won all seven of its matches in Saskatoon.

“I knew we would have some tough competition,” said McGillivary, a 58-year-old who has been curling since 1982. “And curling can go either way. But we knew as long as we played a good game and kept our heads in the game we would have a chance.”

This year the nationals were held thanks to the efforts from individuals from Ile-a-la-Crosse, a Metis community more than a six-hour drive north of Saskatoon.

“It seems like they’re always looking for people to (organize it),” said Nap Gardiner, a spokesperson for this year’s bonspiel.
Besides last year, the 2011 national tournament had also been cancelled.

Gardiner said it cost about $20,000 to run this year’s event. Organizers were hoping to at least break even on the bonspiel through various sponsorships and the funds collected from registration fees.

Gardiner said officials from Ile-a-la-Crosse also plan to continue staging future national bonspiels.

“We’re intending on learning this year and enhancing it and growing it in future years,” he said.