Jones saying goodbye to women’s curling ‘I’m so grateful for curling and I hope curling is grateful for me,’ says curling icon By: Taylor Allen Posted: 11:09 AM CST Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024 Last Modified: 6:35 PM CST Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024 Updates

Jones remembered for poise, skill and ‘The Shot’

wfpsummary:It was the moment Colleen Jones realized the next big thing in curling had officially arrived.

Jennifer Jones, a confident 30-year-old in 2005 competing in just her second Scotties Tournament of Hearts for Team Manitoba, needed to make the shot of a lifetime to win her first women’s national crown.

Trailing 6-4 to Ontario’s Jenn Hanna, the skip from St. Vital hit a rock outside of the house and rolled to the button to overtake an enemy stone to score four for the dramatic win.

It’s been dubbed “The Shot” for good reason.:wfpsummary

It was the moment Colleen Jones realized the next big thing in curling had officially arrived.

Jennifer Jones, a confident 30-year-old in 2005 competing in just her second Scotties Tournament of Hearts for Team Manitoba, needed to make the shot of a lifetime to win her first women’s national crown.

Trailing 6-4 to Ontario’s Jenn Hanna, the skip from St. Vital hit a rock outside of the house and rolled to the button to overtake an enemy stone to score four for the dramatic win.

It’s been dubbed “The Shot” for good reason.

Jones, who on Tuesday announced she’s retiring from four-person curling at the end of the 2023-24 campaign, has no shortage of career highlights, but this moment from almost 20 years ago belongs near the top.

“That’s when our reign came to an end and her reign began. I was behind the scoreboard as she threw that last rock and it was made out of her hand. It was an in-off, an extremely difficult shot. It’s a make or miss, and she threw it beautifully and made it,” said Colleen, a six-time national champion from Nova Scotia who won three straight between 2002-04.

It was at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi when Jones really blew Colleen away. With the maple leaf on her back, Jones didn’t lose a single game and went on to beat Sweden 6-3 to earn gold for Canada.

“She just carried the team when the team, and I hate to use the word, struggled. She made everything, she saw everything, and she, of course, had just come back from having knee surgery and having a baby and all that stuff,” said Colleen.

“She was never bent to the pressure, ever, and threw those beautiful rocks with the focus she always does. In Sochi, it was like, ‘Wow, she’s the “It” girl.’”

Jones, 49, last won the Scotties, her sixth, in 2018 but she can still throw with the best of them. She returned to the Olympics in 2022 in Beijing— going 5-4 to just miss out on the playoffs. Currently in her second year playing with a Winnipeg-based team featuring up-and-comers Karlee Burgess, Emily Zacharias, and Lauren Lenentine, Jones is ranked second in the Canadian rankings behind Ontario’s Rachel Homan.

“Her work ethic is on another level. I didn’t understand work ethic until I started playing with her,” said former lead Dawn McEwen, who played with Hanna before joining Jones in 2007 for a 16-year run.

“It’s just the little things, like always thinking outside of the box and about what we can do better, constantly. Even when we were winning national championships and Grand Slams, it’d be ‘How can we be better?’ and that’s such a special quality. There was no complacency.”

Jones is on route to Calgary to compete in her final Scotties (Feb. 16-25).

“If I was going to trust anybody to throw the last rock in a high pressure situation to win a national or world title or an Olympic gold medal it was gonna be Jennifer Jones and I would still put my money on her,” said retired second Jill Officer, who played 23 years with Jones between junior and women’s.

Kaitlyn Lawes, who skipped her own team to the Manitoba women’s title late last month in Morden, hopes to play against her former skip at least one more time. Lawes and Jones — teammates from 2010-2022 — are in opposite pools and will both need to qualify for the playoffs for that to happen.

“I’m super excited for her. I’m sure it wasn’t an easy decision… but I’m proud of her for going out on her own terms,” said Lawes. “We had 12 incredible years playing together. But not only that, I looked up to her when I was in juniors. She’s been a great role model to all women in sports, and not just in curling.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

X: @TaylorAllen31

Jennifer Jones’ statement

wfpsummary:When I reflect on curling, I think about my lifelong love of the ice and this amazing sport, and I am so aware of the incredible privilege of being with everyone in the game-my teammates, competitors, coaches, television and media members, the talented ice crews, the volunteers, and ultimately those that have supported all of our collective journeys, the fans. I have something important to share with you.

My family tradition of curling, with the companionship and culture of the ice, has been a love affair that began when I was a little girl in Winnipeg. The curling community, the smell of the ice, the excitement of competition, representing our great country-all this is part of me, and I know it will be with me forever.

But I have decided that at the end of this season I will retire from women’s curling.:wfpsummary

When I reflect on curling, I think about my lifelong love of the ice and this amazing sport, and I am so aware of the incredible privilege of being with everyone in the game-my teammates, competitors, coaches, television and media members, the talented ice crews, the volunteers, and ultimately those that have supported all of our collective journeys, the fans. I have something important to share with you.

My family tradition of curling, with the companionship and culture of the ice, has been a love affair that began when I was a little girl in Winnipeg. The curling community, the smell of the ice, the excitement of competition, representing our great country-all this is part of me, and I know it will be with me forever.

But I have decided that at the end of this season I will retire from women’s curling.

I have been so privileged to play thousands of games: the Olympics, National and World Championships, grand slams and so much more domestically and internationally. Curling has challenged me, changed me and called me to be a better person, and I will be forever grateful.

I have a deep appreciation for teammates who have shared so much more than the time on the ice. We have shared in the electricity of arenas and fans, and in the quiet times of planning, training, and thinking about our lives. The team I now play with is very special to me. I am grateful to end this part of my career with these friends, and I can’t wait to see what their future holds.

This decision to step away from women’s competition will allow me to transition to other opportunities, and to be able to focus on my family and be more present with our children in their own lives.

I will continue to compete in mixed doubles with my teammate and husband Brent. This is a decision that will make it just a little less hard to leave what I love so much. But that does not make it an easy decision. It is hard to leave the game that has been such a beautiful love my whole life.

I am grateful for those who have made it so much richer. Thank you to my teammates, coaches, competitors around the world, television and media members who cover the sport, sponsors whose support made it possible for me and my teammates to compete at the highest levels, and my second home – The St. Vital Curling Club.

And thank you to my incredibly supportive husband Brent, our wonderful children, my Dad who first introduced me to the game and spent countless early morning hours on the ice with me, my sister who is my number one fan, my amazing friends who have cheered me on through countless competitions, and my beautiful Mom without whom we could not have accomplished any of this.

And thanks to curling fans everywhere who have been there to make our dreams so much bigger and more powerful. Without our fans, we would all just be people throwing rocks in a rink; with you we become part of epic dramas full of intensity, high stakes, and passion.

The inspiration of playing with you in the stands has been the highlight of my career. My own celebrations, laughter, agonies, and experiences have been made immeasurably better because you were there with me. And thanks to those rocks, the rings and that ice that have so captivated my soul.

– Jennifer Jones

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