Saskatchewan skip Matt Dunstone, who resides in Kamloops, isn't sure about the upcoming curling season with COVID-19 restrictions in that province (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Adam Donnelly

CURLING RESTRICTIONS

Dunstone uncertain of curling season after COVID-19 restrictions on Saskatchewan curlers

Oct 9, 2020 | 5:31 PM

KAMLOOPS — Saskatchewan skip Matt Dunstone is one of the up-and-coming stars of Canadian curling, but he sits between a rock and a hard place when it comes to the 2020-2021 curling season.

The Kamloops resident, who won the 2020 SaskTel tankard and finished third while representing Saskatchewan at the Brier, is heading back to the Prairies to curl. However, as with many activities in our pandemic world, there are significant questions about the season ahead for the Dunstone rink, as they work towards a national championship.

“The [Saskatchewan] government has made a rule that we’re not allowed to compete outside of our province, which is obviously very strange for us,” Dunstone told CFJC Sports. “Last year, our only event in Saskatchewan was the provincial championship.”

Due to COVID-19 safety guidelines, inter-provincial travel is off the table for Saskatchewan’s top curlers. Dunstone, the reigning provincial champion, has to travel to Saskatchewan to curl but is unable to compete outside that province. That decision limits his rink’s opportunities.

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“In Pentiction, it’s the biggest cash-spiel in the world — $85,000 purse,” Dunstone says. “Obviously, we’re not allowed to be part of that at this point.”

Then there’s the question of the national championship. The 2021 Tim Horton’s Brier is set to take place in Kelowna from March 6-to-14. With the provincial travel restriction in place, Dunstone doesn’t know what to expect.

“As far as we know, the provincials, the Brier, all that is still a go, as far as we’ve heard. Again, with this new rule, is Saskatchewan going to be allowed to compete in the Brier? Based on the rule, technically, no. I’m hoping we can get a little more clarity on that because the Brier is the biggest event marked on our calendar this year.”

While there’s definitely some frustration with the decision to limit inter-provincial travel, Dunstone is using the lemons he’s been dealt to make some lemonade. He’s helped organize a Saskatchewan Super Series, featuring five top men’s teams from inside the province. He also realizes that decision to keep Sask curlers in Saskatchewan this year is based around safety.

“Luckily enough in Saskatchewan, there’s a lot of really competitive, good rinks that will make us work for everything we play for. But again, we’re not going to play the best teams in Western Canada and the world,” he says. “Everybody’s dealing with stuff, with COVID. Nobody feels bad for athletes in this sense. We’re just trying to adjust on the fly and we know everyone is trying their best.”