Canada’s Einarson sharp in 9-2 win over Italy to kick off world curling championship

In the pre-game draw-the-button shots that determine which team gets hammer to start the game, Einarson put hers almost on the pinhole, which was a harbinger of things to come in the game.

“That definitely helps,” the skip said. “I had a really good feel for draw weight out there.”

Fans physically in a curling arena has been rare in Canada for the last two years because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

When Einarson, Val Sweeting, Shannon Birchard and Brianne Meilleur won a third straight national championship Feb. 6, only volunteers and some junior curlers were allowed into Thunder Bay’s building on the final weekend to see it.

Einarson and company competed in a world championship in Calgary’s curling bubble without spectators last year.

The Gimli Curling Club team from Manitoba had arrived in Prince George for the 2020 world championship only for it to be abruptly called off because of the pandemic.

Einarson played in front of fans at November’s curling trials in Saskatoon. The Canadian men’s championship that concluded Sunday in Lethbridge, Alta., had no capacity limits.

But wearing the Maple Leaf in a building where the majority of spectators are pro-Canada had felt like a long time coming for Einarson.

The skip relished the CN Centre’s appreciation of her team’s shots.

“Getting that and feeding off that is something we’ve missed,” the Canadian skip said. “I stepped on the ice and just instantly got goosebumps and my family, I looked up and they’re right behind us.”

Constantini, 22, won Olympic mixed doubles gold in Beijing last month with Amos Mosaner. The Italian skip struggled where Einarson excelled with 39 per cent accuracy on 11 draws.

“It’s very wonderful ice, but it’s very different from our ice in Italy,” Constantini said. “We have to keep working, communicating and improving. Canada played a really good game. They are a really strong team.”

Canada was to meet Norway’s Marianne Roervik in Saturday evening’s draw.

In other opening draw games, Sweden downed Turkey 9-6, the United States beat the Czech Republic 9-2 and South Korea edged Norway 7-6 in an extra end.

Sweden’s Anna Hasselborg won an Olympic bronze medal last month in Beijing, where a limited number of Chinese spectators were allowed into venues.

The Swedish skip felt her team shed some post-Olympic fatigue Saturday.

“Stepping out on the ice here today, and it was like people in the stands, people that applaud you, and all the feelings just got back to me and love for the game,” Hasselborg said.

“I think it’s amazing to see people out there cheering for you and cheering good shots. Even though they were super-much celebrating Canada, it doesn’t matter as long as there’s noise.”

Einarson’s team lost five of six to start the 2021 world championship in Calgary. They scrambled into the six-team playoff by winning six of their last seven, but fell short of the semifinals.

“Battling back from that one and five start just showed our resilience and our grittiness,” Sweeting said. “We definitely don’t want to put ourselves in that hole, but it’s a new event. We’ll just keep building on everything we can.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 19, 2022.

Donna Spencer, The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

Canada’s Einarson sharp in 9-2 win over Italy to kick off world curling championship

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