The Jamaican women’s curling team won a historic silver medal at the World Curling Federation’s Pan Continental Championships held in Kelowna, Canada. With the win, the women’s team joined Jamaica’s legendary bobsledders in making a mark on the competitive winter sports scene for the Caribbean island nation.

What is Curling?

The winter sport of curling dates back to early 16th century Scotland. In curling, two competing teams of four players each slide heavy, polished stones made of granite on a sheet of ice toward a goal area divided into four concentric circles. Each team has eight stones, and each player throws two with the goal of getting the stones closest to the center of the marked area. The team with the highest score wins. The movement of the stones can be influenced by the actions of “sweepers,” two players with brooms who accompany the stone sliding on the ice and sweep the area in front of it as it moves toward the goal. Sweeping reduces friction and allows the stone to travel further and on a straighter path. Curling has been included at the Winter Olympic Games since 1998 and currently features men’s, women’s, and mixed doubles tournaments.

Jamaica Has A Curling Team

Jamaica joined the World Curling Federation in 2022 and made a major impact on the global curling scene.  The team created a platform in which the nation can showcase its skill in the sport. The impact was much the same as when Jamaica fielded a bobsled team 30 years ago to surprise the world as a competitor in the realm of Olympic winter sports. Jamaica’s journey to success in curling began when the founder and former president of Curling Jamaica, Ben Kong, reached out to veteran curler, Cristiene Hall-Teravainen.

Leads the Team To A Medal

Jamaica’s women’s curling team is headed by Hall-Teravainen, an experienced curler who moved from Jamaica to Toronto, Canada, when she was six years old and was introduced to the sport in the 1980s by her husband. Hall-Teravainen is an active promoter of curling in Ontario and in her role as the vice-president of Curling Jamaica, has been instrumental in developing Jamaica’s team.

Silver Medal Motivates Team

Winning the silver medal at the World Curling Federation’s Pan Continental Championships has motivated the team and proved that it is possible to realize a dream through perseverance and passion. The team showed its skill by holding its own in the final match against the curling powerhouse, Team China led by Han Yu, which ultimately took the gold medal. In spite of the loss, team members Madeleine Spurgeon, Stephanie Chen, Margot Shepherd-Spurgeon, and Hall-Teravainen came away with a strong sense of pride in their historic achievement.

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