By Dori Modney (@Dori_Modney on Twitter)

Sweeping Out the Old and Preparing for a Rock Solid Future – Curling Club Throws Last Rock at Civic Centre

Apr 16, 2016 | 9:54 PM

LETHBRIDGE:   The Lethbridge Curling Club held a special closing ceremony Saturday night to mark the end of an era at its current facility. The club will be moving into a brand new building on west side this fall, as the new Crossings Curling facility is expected to open in September at the city’s new recreation facility.   

The closing ceremony came at the end of the very last bonspiel to be held at the Civic Centre curling rink and brought a rush of nostalgia.

The Lethbridge Curling Club was established in 1887, as one of the very first curling clubs in Alberta. It has been located at the current Civic Centre site, on 6th Avenue South, since 1950. Membership during the club’s last season has grown close to 1100 curlers.

The Curling Club’s Board of Directors chose two of its members, from those nominated, to throw the last rocks at the location. The men’s last stone was thrown by Tosh Kanashiro and the women’s last stone was thrown by Karen Bourassa.

Tosh has been with the Lethbridge Curling Club since the early 60’s and was inducted as a Lethbridge Curling Club Life Member in 2008, while Karen, who has been curling since the age of 12, joined the local club in 1990.  Both have provided significant volunteer time with the curling club and have been responsible for the success of some of the club’s major events and bonspiels.

What's Happening in Lethbridge this week: April 15, 2024

Apr 15, 2024

Week-in-review: Street sweeping, policing in Coaldale and #SlowYourRoll

Apr 13, 2024

What's Happening in Lethbridge this weekend: April 12, 2024

Apr 12, 2024

While the Curling Club will be changing location, its membership goes with it and is excited about a new facility and events that have already been confirmed at the new location.

In early March, it was announced that City Council had agreed to grant $100,000 in-kind use of the new Crossings Complex curling facility, which would be home to the 2017 World Mixed Doubles and World Senior Curling Championships.

At that time, Lethbridge Curling Club President, Mike Mulroy, noted that such events usually have to be split between several locations, but both championships will be able to be held under one roof.  

Representatives from nearly 35 countries are expected to attend, as it’s also the last event for mixed doubles teams to qualify for the 2018 Olympics. “It will be contested in South Korea as an Olympic medal sport for the first time. There are, I believe, seven countries still to be designated as qualified. Our [event] will award qualifying points toward the Olympics,” Mulroy noted. 

“Our hope is that there’s a number of teams that are very close to making it. It’ll make for a really exciting event.”

It’s expected the event could bring roughly $1.5-million in economic activity to the city and surrounding area.

This will be the second time Canada will play host to the championships. They were held in Fredericton, New Brunswick in 2013.