The team led by Kaitlyn Lawes from Winnipeg secured the last spot in the 18-team lineup for the upcoming Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Curling Canada announced that Lawes, along with Selena Njegovan, Jocelyn Peterman, and Kristin Gordon, clinched the final pre-qualification position as the top-ranked team not already qualified through provincial or territorial competitions.
This opportunity arose when Kerri Einarson’s pre-qualified team took over Rachel Homan’s position as the Canadian representative, as Homan is focusing on preparing for the upcoming Milan-Cortina Olympics. Lawes, currently ranked fourth in the latest Canadian standings with 151.450 points, narrowly beat out Alberta’s Serena Gray-Withers, who holds the fifth spot with 151.225 points.
Jocelyn Peterman will not be part of the lineup for the tournament happening from January 23 to February 1 at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, as she is gearing up to compete with mixed doubles partner Brett Gallant at the Winter Games. Laura Walker will step in to replace Peterman as the second player, and Erin Pincott will serve as the team’s alternate. Calgary’s Kayla Skrlik and Halifax’s Christina Black also secured pre-qualification spots in the event.
The list of other qualified teams includes Selena Sturmay from Alberta, Taylor Reese-Hansen from British Columbia, Melodie Forsythe from New Brunswick, Mackenzie Mitchell from Newfoundland and Labrador, Krista Scharf from Northern Ontario, Nicky Kaufman from the Northwest Territories, Taylour Stevens from Nova Scotia, Julia Weagle from Nunavut, Hailey Armstrong from Ontario, Amanda Power from Prince Edward Island, Jolianne Fortin from Quebec, Jolene Campbell from Saskatchewan, and Bayly Scoffin from Yukon.
The victorious team at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts will go on to represent Canada at the world women’s curling championship in Calgary from March 14 to 22.