Curling was the last event to wrap up at the 2012 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games and was well worth the wait for the Alberta Rocks team, which scored gold in the Division B finals.
A few shaky games Friday put the Red Deer team in an uncertain position heading into the final last Saturday at the St. Albert Curling Club.
“We had a couple bad games (Friday) and we didn’t play to our potential,” said head coach Gene Sale. “But (Saturday), everybody came to play and we thought we could come in a little casual and just have some fun and you’re having fun when you’re winning.”
It was a measure of revenge for Alberta Rocks when they won 8-4 over Ontario Brampton, the team that tainted the Rocks’ flawless win record the day prior.
Coming off a tie game, Sale said he didn’t know if the team could edge ahead and pull off a win against Brampton.
“This team’s good enough to win, but when you come to play, you come to play and when you don’t come to play, you don’t win,” he said.
Clearly, the team came to play.
Skipper Graham Kryzanowski said he had no doubt in his mind that the team would win in the final match.
“It was really good competition. We played kind of bad at times, but you know what, we pulled through it,” he said. “We just played our best and we had a good game.”
He said the tie game Friday should have been a win for the Rocks, but a few minor slip-ups were to blame for the outcome. He said heading into the final knowing what the team was capable of, he was confident the team would come out on top in the finals.
“The team played well; we played together,” he said.
Kryzanowski has been curling for roughly a decade and said this is his first experience winning gold at nationals.
“This is a really big deal,” he said. “It’s pretty special. This is just the tip of the iceberg.”
Alberta’s second team, the Alberta Rebels from Calgary, managed a silver medal for its performance in the Division C finals. The Yukon came out on top in the final, winning 13-2 for the gold.
“We did well and the other team did well,” Kryzanowski said. “A silver and a gold for the province, that’s pretty special for both teams.”
