City council voted unanimously on May 28, 2024 to provide a letter of support, as well as $400,000 in cash and in-kind services, to support the Lethbridge Curling Club in the bid to host the event. (Photo: LNN)

By Christian Oldale

Lethbridge Curling Club says 2026 Scotties bid is a highly profitable investment

Jun 10, 2024 | 11:14 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – Lethbridge is officially putting in a bid for the 2026 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, and the Lethbridge Curling Club is looking forward to the potential games.

City council voted unanimously on May 28, 2024 to provide a letter of support, as well as $400,000 in cash and in-kind services, to support the Lethbridge Curling Club in the bid to host the event.

READ MORE: City of Lethbridge approves funding to bid for 2026 Scotties Tournament of Hearts

Kirk Mearns, General Manager of the Lethbridge Curling Club spoke to Lethbridge News Now about how the bid came to be, and he says he is very excited that it is moving forward.

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Lethbridge has hosted the Scotties Tournament of Hearts on two previous occasions, in 1987 and 2007. Both were held at the ENMAX Centre, with the former competition coming when the building was called the Lethbridge Sportsplex.

Lethbridge and southern Alberta has become a hotbed for curling. Aside from the Scotties tournaments, the city hosted the Tim Hortons Brier in 2021, and in 2025 it will see the 2025 U SPORTS/Curling Canada Canadian University Championships and the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association/Curling Canada Canadian College Championships both held here.

Lethbridge is one of six Canadian cities to have hosted the Brier, the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, and both the World Men’s and World Women’s curling championships.

Mearns spoke on why Lethbridge has become an ideal spot for competitions like the Scotties.

With the $400,000 bid for the tournament, the money will only be paid if the bill is successful. Mearns says the money will stay in the city, as Curling Canada will use the funds to rent the ENMAX Centre and other facilities for the course of the tournament.

He adds that past tournaments have had a very large economic impact on the city, its businesses and the surrounding communities.

If Lethbridge is selected to be the host of the 2026 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the event would run from January 23 to February 1, 2026, and feature the top 18 women’s curling teams from across Canada, including at least two teams from Alberta.

Curling Canada is expected to announce the host city in January of 2025.

READ MORE: City of Lethbridge approves funding to bid for 2026 Scotties Tournament of Hearts

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