Guy can’t get no satisfaction
Martin and crew keep striving for perfection, even after big wins
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/12/2010 (5718 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
MEDICINE HAT, Alta. — Here’s what separates Kevin Martin’s Olympic-champion men’s curling team from the rest.
Martin, third John Morris, second Marc Kennedy and lead Ben Hebert won three of their first five events on the Asham World Curling Tour this year — and still weren’t satisfied.
The realization that the half-Edmonton, half-Calgary outfit was fortunate to win some of those events was precisely the jump-start it needed leading into the Canada Cup of Curling, where today they will take on Glenn Howard of Coldwater, Ont., in the championship game.
Meanwhile on the women’s side, Cheryl Bernard of Calgary will face Stefanie Lawton of Saskatoon in today’s women’s final.
“After winning three of our first four and not playing exactly like we wanted to? That was the kick in the butt we needed,” said Morris on Saturday, following a 7-4 win over Howard in the Page playoff one-vs.-one game. “We didn’t just sit back and say, ‘Oh, jeez, we won three of four, everything’s all good.’ It was more like, ‘Well, we won three out of four, but we’ve been lucky. Let’s bear down and play better.’
“That’s what we’ve done here… And we’re in the final; we need one more.”
Martin has made a habit of doing well in finals over the years: No skip has won more money on the tour, and his 2010 Olympic gold medal speaks for itself.
Howard, who’s lost four straight matches to Martin, defeated world champion Kevin Koe of Edmonton 9-7 in Saturday’s semifinal for the opportunity to play Martin in today’s title game.
Koe beat Winnipeg’s Mike McEwen 10-7 in the Page playoff two-vs.-two game to get into the semi.
In the women’s final, one thing’s for sure: Bernard’s rink won’t let any pressure affect it.
Last season, the foursome endured a lifetime’s worth of nerves during a run through the Olympic trials and then the Vancouver Winter Games, ending up with a silver medal. The group completed a dream season with a victory at the Grand Slam Players’ Championship.
“It’s not the same,” Susan O’Connor, Bernard’s third, said Saturday following a 6-4 win over Calgary’s Shannon Kleibrink in the Page playoff one-one game. “I don’t know that we’ll ever be stressed again in curling.”
Lawton reached the final with an 8-4 win over Kleibrink.
— Postmedia News
