FREDERICTON, New Brunswick, Aug. 27, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Team Gushue has swept their way to a victory at the inaugural Everest Curling Challenge in Fredericton, N.B., winning $200,000 – the largest single cash prize ever awarded in the sport. Following a high-intensity and fun-filled tournament featuring the world’s 32 best curlers – broadcast exclusively on TSN, the event’s official broadcast partner – Team Gushue and Team Epping faced off in the final draw.
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Fans were treated to a unique curling tournament format that featured the world’s elite curlers, including current women’s and men’s Olympic Champions as well as reigning Scotties, Brier, and World Champions. Before the competition began on Friday, each skip was tasked with drafting a new team, consisting of two female and two male players, excluding any teammates who are part of their regular competition teams.
Throughout the event, which ran from August 25-27 at Willie O’Ree Place, players competed in a single-game, elimination-style tournament that featured seven draws in front of sold-out crowds, with hundreds of curling fans gathering outside the arena to catch the action streamed on the big screen as part of the Fredericton River Rocks Tailgate Party.
“Everest is incredibly proud to support and promote the sport of curling and wants to congratulate Team Gushue on their win and thank all the players who participated in this weekend, The City of Fredericton, and all our volunteers for making the Everest Curling Challenge a great event to watch,” said Mark Duffey, President and CEO at Everest Funeral Concierge. “The City of Fredericton was alive with curling fans this weekend. The energy in and outside the arena was fantastic. Curling fans demonstrate the same values of community, fellowship and accessibility as we do at Everest and we feel it’s important to celebrate and recognize them.”
Teams were comprised of 32 of the world’s best curlers, and consisted of some exhilarating match-ups through a unique player draft that took place on August 24, which was exciting for players and fans alike. One team member from each original competition team was represented in the Everest Curling Challenge finale. The final match-up between Team Gushue and Team Epping was extremely close with a 5-5 tie going into the eighth end, and with two rocks in play for Epping, Gushue had the hammer and was able to score one, winning 6-5.
Everest Curling Champion Teams:
Team Carey: Chelsea Carey, Ryan Fry, Dana Ferguson, Ben Hebert
Team Epping: John Epping, Kaitlyn Lawes, Brent Laing, Rachel Brown
Team Gushue: Brad Gushue, Cathy Overton, E.J. Harnden, Lisa Weagle
Team Homan: Rachel Homan, Mat Camm, Jill Officer, Geoff Walker
Team Jacobs: Brad Jacobs, Lori Olson-Johns, Brett Gallant, Laine Peters
Team Jones: Jennifer Jones, Marc Kennedy, Joanne Courtney, Tim March
Team Koe: Kevin Koe, Emma Miskew, Patrick Janssen, Dawn McEwen
Team Sweeting: Val Sweeting, Marc Nichols, Jocelyn Peterman, Ryan Harnden
“As someone who has spent most of their life dedicated to excelling in this sport, being a part of this unique event was incredibly thrilling,” commented Skip Brad Gushue. “From the unique draft, to the passionate fans, to the high energy felt throughout the arena, and the great broadcast on TSN, the Everest Curling Challenge provided the perfect atmosphere for our team to work together and come out on top. Everest has been a supporter of curling for years and it was wonderful to see them expand their footprint and create an event that was truly an unforgettable experience for both players and fans.”
“We were thrilled to partner with Everest and work with the city of Fredericton to deliver this world-class curling tournament to fans across Canada,” said Shawn Redmond, Vice-President, Content Strategy and Business Operations, TSN. “This tournament continues TSN’s tradition of delivering innovating and unique sports broadcasts to fans across the country, and we thank and congratulate all the curlers and Team Gushue on a great, and entertaining event.”
Coverage of the event was broadcast live across TSN, with live streaming available to TSN subscribers via TSN.ca/Live, with the Everest Curling Challenge also available for live streaming in the U.S. on ESPN3.
For more information, go to @EverestCurling on Facebook and Twitter and visit www.EverestCurlingChallenge.com.
About Everest
Everest is the first nationwide funeral concierge service. An independent consumer advocate, Everest was launched in Canada in 2001 with the goal of creating a continent-wide service to help streamline and simplify the process for grieving families. Its sole purpose is to provide information to consumers when they need to make informed choices about funeral-related issues. Serving as an impartial advocate, Everest is not a funeral home, nor does it sell funeral goods or services and does not receive commissions from funeral homes or other providers in the funeral industry. Today, Everest services are available to more than 25 million people in Canada and the United States. Visit www.EverestFuneral.com for more information.
About TSN
TSN is Canada’s Sports Leader and provides world-class content across its industry-leading platforms including five national television feeds, TSN.ca, TSN GO, and TSN Radio stations across the country. With a broad portfolio of multimedia sports assets, Champions Live Here as TSN delivers more championship events than any broadcaster in the country. The network’s deep and diverse roster of live sports programming includes the Grey Cup, IIHF World Junior Championship, Hockey Canada events, CFL, NFL, NBA, MLS, Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens, Winnipeg Jets, Season of Champions Curling, FIFA World Cup, UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, Premier League, CONCACAF Gold Cup and Champions League, MLB, Golf’s Majors, NASCAR, F1, Grand Slam Tennis, UFC, NCAA March Madness, and Skate Canada and Rugby Canada events. TSN is a division of Bell Media, which is part of BCE Inc. (TSX:BCE) (NYSE:BCE), Canada’s largest communications company.
About ESPN3
ESPN3 is ESPN’s live multi-screen sports network, a destination that delivers thousands of exclusive sports events annually. It is accessible on computers, smartphones, tablets and streaming devices through WatchESPN and the ESPN app. The network is currently available nationwide at no additional cost who receive their high-speed Internet connection or video subscription from an affiliated service provider. It is also available at no cost to U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers, smartphones and tablets connected to on-campus educational and on-base military broadband and Wi-Fi networks.