Koe skipping 3-man curling team at PointsBet Invitational

Kevin Koe volition skip a three-man curling squad for now.

The four-time Canadian and two-time men’s satellite champion dropped 2nd Jacques Gauthier from his Glencoe Club squad connected the eve of the PointsBet Invitational that started Wednesday successful Calgary.

Koe opened the lawsuit that offers $50,000 successful prize wealth to each of the men’s and women’s winners with an 8-4 doubling of nationalist assemblage men’s champion Josh Bryden.

Koe, who besides represented Canada successful the 2018 Winter Olympics, says determination wasn’t capable clip to find a replacement for Gauthier for the PointsBet, and determination won’t beryllium capable clip earlier adjacent week’s archetypal Grand Slam of the season, which is the HearingLife Tour Challenge successful Charlottetown.

“We haven’t talked to anyone yet,” Koe said. “We’ll spot who tin travel and play an lawsuit oregon two. I don’t deliberation we’re going to unreserved retired and drawback idiosyncratic close away, but travel to an lawsuit with america and spot however it goes.

A big-name curling escaped cause without a squad successful Koe’s location state is Brendan Bottcher. The skip of the No. 2 men’s squad successful Canada past play was supplanted connected his squad by Brad Jacobs.

When asked if it was a anticipation Bottcher would articulation his team, Koe replied “no, it’s not.”

After skipping his ain squad for 4 years and representing B.C. successful the 2023 Brier, Gauthier joined Koe, his relative Tyler Tardi and Karrick Martin to play 2nd for the 2023-24 season.

The squad won a brace of circuit events and made 5 finals with Gauthier connected the squad, but didn’t suffice for playoffs successful 5 Grand Slam appearances and went 2-6 astatine the Canadian title successful Regina to miss playoffs.

Koe went 2-3 successful the ATB Okotoks Classic past week earlier Gauthier was axed.

The 25-year-old lad of Canadian champion and tv commentator Cathy Gauthier, said Wednesday successful a connection posted connected X, formerly known arsenic Twitter: “Elephant successful the room. I got chopped yesterday.”

“I wasn’t definite if I should marque a nationalist remark connected it, but I wanted to supply immoderate clarity,” Gauthier wrote.

“The squad decided I wasn’t performing to their modular and decided they’d prosecute alternate options moving forward.

“It happens. Nothing is simply a fixed successful this sport, and though I americium amazed astatine the timing, I cognize I tin beryllium amended arsenic a player. I program connected utilizing this arsenic an accidental to turn some arsenic an idiosyncratic and a curler, looking to amended successful each areas.

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The 49-year-old Koe wants to skip a squad that tin suffice for, and win, adjacent year’s Olympic trials, which helium says is apt his past trials.

“We struggled astatine the extremity of past play and we had immoderate bully talks and meetings and thought we could crook it astir astatine the commencement of the year,” Koe said.

“If the trials were a mates years distant we astir apt would person been a small much patient. They’re 14 months distant basically.

“They’re ne'er easy, these moves. Jaques was a large teammate, large curler, champion person, but we felt we needed to bash what was champion for the team.”

Koe finished past play ranked 5th successful the men’s Canadian Team Ranking System.

Four teams ranked higher – Brad Gushue, Jacobs, Mike McEwen and Matt Dunstone – person pre-qualified for the 2025 Montana’s Brier successful Kelowna, B.C.

Koe volition person to triumph Alberta provincials to articulation them. Since Koe, Tardi and Martin unrecorded successful Alberta, the squad tin enlistee a subordinate from extracurricular the province.

“We’ve had a fewer radical benignant of inquire, but this was yesterday, right?” Koe said. “It’s a large week for us. We request immoderate amended results.

“We’ll commencement talking astir it successful a week oregon two. Maybe we’ll get immoderate offers we weren’t expecting.

“We’re amended than benignant of the past half-year has shown, but it’s clip for america to beryllium it.”

This study by The Canadian Press was archetypal published Sept. 25, 2024.