Anne Merklinger understands the mind of an athlete. As a swimmer she competed with the University of South Carolina and Canada's national team, a choice that delayed her curling pursuits for four years. Eventually Anne returned to Ottawa and developed a team that would battle the best in Canada for a decade. Her rink of third Theresa Breen, second Patti McKnight and lead Audrey Frey won four Ontario Provincials, losing a semifinal (1994) and two finals ('98 and '00) at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Anne's career in sport management led to a role as director of Canoe Kayak Canada and then to her current position as CEO of Own the Podium, Canada's Olympic development program. We discuss the difficult losses, Ontario rivalries, the early days of the Womens Tour and the positive influence Olympians can have on Canadians.
Friday, March 29, 2019
Saturday, March 16, 2019
Epsiode 51 - Bob Weeks/Mickey Duzyj
Bob Weeks joins Kevin to discuss the recent results from TSN's attempt to rank Canada's Greatest Curlers (35:45). Bob explains how the process came together and they discuss the many challenges of trying to rank curlers from different eras. Eventually they dig into the categories and compare their choices with the results. Before talking to Bob, Kevin is joined by Mickey Duzyj, creator of the Netflix sports documentary series LOSERS. Episode 4 is "Stone Cold", inspired by the first episode of Curling Legends Podcast. It tells the story of Pat Ryan, centered around his epic battle with Al Hackner in the 1985 Brier final. Mickey shares the origins on the series, reflects on his introduction to curling culture.
You can hear Pat Ryan on Episode 1 of Curlng Legends Podcast. You can also check out Rick Lang on Episode 48 and get Don Bartlett's story of the Hackner Double in Episode 39.
Be sure to get yourself a copy of "The Brier" by Bob Weeks and check out some of his other books, Hurry Hard, Curling for Dummies and Curling, Etcetera
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