Kincardine Special Olympians bring home gold from nationals in Newfoundland

It may have been cold in Corner Brook, Newfoundland, but five Kincardine Special Olympians were on fire, bringing home gold from the Canadian Winter Games, March 1-5, as part of Team Ontario.

The curling team of skip Ryan Brodhagen, second Chris Weese, lead Jackie McDonald, and vice Tyler Jilek of Kincardine, and alternate Gary Nuhn of Owen Sound, defeated Alberta to win gold medals.

"We played four games in the round-robin, and were undefeated, putting us in first place," said Brodhagen. "Then, we went on to the gold-medal game against Alberta and we won!"

"We were shocked," added Weese. "We've never been to the nationals before, but we just played the same way we did at the provincials in North Bay and it worked!"

Brodhagen said the strategy against Alberta in the final match, was to put guards up in front of the house which the Albertans could not get past.

"They had made a lot of missed calls," he said. "We were up, 6-1, after four ends, and then Alberta started to make a comeback."

"I was a little worried," said Jilek, "but by the time it came to throw the last rock, we knew we had won, so I just tossed it."

The curling matches were two hours long, or up to eight ends, said community coach Jim McDonald, who travelled with the team to the national games.

Meanwhile, figure skater Rosie Laidler, also of Kincardine, competed in Level 6 dance on the Thursday, and Level 5 freeskate on the Friday, and brought home gold medals in both.

"I knew I was going to win gold in dance, but I was surprised to win gold in freeskate," she said, adding that the freeskate win means she qualifies for international competition, with the games slated for Austria in March, 2017. "We'll have to wait and see if I'm considered for Team Canada."

As for Corner Brook, Brodhagen said it was nice but cold. "There wasn't much snow," he said. "They got some rain and you could see the grass."

The group did some sight-seeing, and enjoyed a trip to see the "The Old Man in the Mountain" - carved into the rock - just outside Corner Brook. They also saw a bit of the ocean. The curling team watched Laidler compete, and they all took in the speed-skating.

Besides winning gold, one of the memorable moments of the trip was the flight home which was delayed twice because of a snowstorm. Joining them for the trip to Corner Brook, were community coach Jim McDonald of Kincardine, head coach Ronnie Carter of Fonthill, and assistant coach Dorothy Gilchrist of Owen Sound, as well as several parents.

The group thanks all the businesses, organizations, service clubs and individuals for their financial support. Without their generosity, the team would not have been able to travel to Corner Brook.

The athletes, coaches and parents brought home beautiful handmade scarves, part of the 2016 Special Olympics Scarf Project. The scarves are red, green and gold - red for Special Olympics, green for Newfoundland and Labrador's pine-clad hills, and yellow for the ultimate reward of gold and a colour in the provincial flag. Scarves were knit by people in Newfoundland and Labrador, as well as Ontario, Alberta, Nova Scotia and the United States.

All the Kincardine athletes said they will continue to practise and maintain the skills in their winter sports. The curling team plans to compete in summer sports, such as bocce ball, softball and track and field. The provincial summer games are slated for the end of May in Guelph. If they win there, they are eligible for the nationals in Nova Scotia.