A Dauphin curler has earned a spot at the International University Sports Federation world games, in Torino, Italy, Jan. 13 to 23, 2025.
Carter Williamson, helped his University of Regina Cougars team qualify for nationals at the Canada West championships, with six teams competing for one of two spots at nationals.
The event was a round-robin format with each team playing five games, with the top two teams advancing to nationals, which were held in Frederiction, NB, Mar. 12 to 16.
The Cougars, which consists of skip Joshua Bryden, third Adam Bukurak, lead Ryan Grabarczyk and fifth Ayden Whittmire, drew the top-ranked University of Alberta Golden Bears on the first day of the competition, losing 7-6 in 10 ends.
It was Regina’s only loss of the round-robin event, with Williamson stating the team went on a winning streak after their loss to the Golden Bears.
“We ended that weekend with pretty high spirits,” he said.
At nationals, the Cougars finished the round-robin with a 4-3 record, qualifying for playoffs, where they got as measure of revenge against the Golden Bears, beating them 7-5 in the semifinals.
The Golden Bears had finished first after the round-robin, with a 6-1 record.
In the final, the Cougars beat Dalhousie University, 8-5, to claim the national title and earn a berth at worlds, next January.
Winning nationals, Williamson said, means everything to him.
“It’s the reason why we curl, is to be called Team Canada one day. It’s the reason my mom and I drove how many hours looking through the windshield just to go to some curling rink in the middle of nowhere just to watch me get absolutely killed out there,” he said. “It’s why we train. It’s why we’re out on the ice every day. All my teammates love the game. So do I. And we’re racing each other to the rink every day it feels like. It’s pretty special.”
The worlds, Williamson said, are basically the university Olympic games. He is looking forward to the trip and so is his mom Jody Romanow, who he said is already looking at flights to book.
Given how well Canada does on the international stage, Williamson is confident in the team’s chances, but he also recognizes that there will also be some pressure on the team to do well.
“It’s a double edged sword, too. Everyone is going to be looking towards us, like, ‘oh that’s Team Canada.’ I curl with Josh and Adam in men’s and we just go there to have fun. That’s really all we do. We show up and we give it our all, but we do it with a smile on our face,” he said. “It really doesn’t matter who we’re playing, when we’re playing at all. It’s all the same four guys out there on the ice.”
