Canadians dream of curling for Russia is over.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
In little more than a week, Jason Gunnlaugson went from an almost-sure spot in the 2014 Winter Olympics to the unemployment line.
It's been a truly bizarre period for the Manitoba curler, which started last April when he and two teammates were recruited by the Russian Curling Federation to become the core of that country's national men's team. Sensing its native curlers wouldn't be good enough to challenge for medals by 2014, the Russians went the mercenary route, agreeing to pay the three a rumoured $100,000 (U.S.) per year each, with the goal of getting them on the podium at the Sochi Games.
For three of the brightest young curlers around, the offer was the opportunity for an excellent adventure.
"I think just about every curler thinks about being able to play the game full time," said Gunnlaugson, who made it to last year's Canadian Curling Trials. "None of us has anything tying us down, so it was a great chance to see the world and curl."
Gunnlaugson, along with Justin Richter and Tyler Forrest, travelled to Russia and trained and practised under the guidance of Canadian-born coach Patti Wuthrich, who'd previously been hired by the Russians and who first recruited the Winnipeggers. A month ago, the team, which includes Russian players Alexey Stukalsky and Alexander Kozyrev, won the national championship - a relatively small affair played in a 500-seat arena before only a handful of fans.
With that title under their belts, the three Canadians were led to believe they were to be fast-tracked for Russian passports, which would make them eligible to curl in the European championships in Switzerland, which started last Friday. A top-seven finish there would have given them a spot in the world championships in Regina in April.
But two weeks ago, after arranging visas for the three Canadians to travel back to Russia to get their new passports, Wuthrich received word that citizenship would take at least three months, meaning the European championships were out and their contracts were void.
"It was a pretty big blow to them," said Wuthrich, who delivered the news. "They're devastated. We expected once we won [the Russian title]the citizenship wouldn't be a problem."
While no official reason was given, some suspect the Russians may have used the citizenship angle as a way out after Gunnlaugson struggled at their nationals. The rink was only mediocre in the seven-game round robin, finishing at 5-2 before hitting its stride, winning the semi-final and then blasting its opponents 7-1 in the final.
Wuthrich couldn't confirm that, but did say communication with the Russians has been frustrating, with few answers provided. She added an official notice that the team has been dropped still hasn't been received.
Gunnlaugson's curling career was in limbo for a period. However, the Canadian Curling Association appealed to the World Curling Federation for clarification on his status. It was determined that since he never represented Russia in any international competition, Gunnlaugson was still able to play for the Canadian title - meaning he could possibly win two national championships in one season.
Russian curling is still quite young, with the game only grabbing a toe-hold in 1991. Gunnlaugson, who was also supposed to help develop the grassroots of the game as part of his contract, estimated there to be between 500 and 1,000 players in Russia and roughly 10 clubs, none of which are dedicated curling facilities.
"Technically, they're really strong," he said of the top rinks, "but they lack experience. I mean you can pretty much predict exactly what they're going to do in every situation. It's like they're following a playbook."
He said at this point, the top teams would be hard pressed to be competitive in a World Curling Tour event.
The Russian women have progressed much faster. The top rink, skipped by Ludmila Privivkova, won the 2006 world junior and European women's title. It also played in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, finishing with a 3-6 mark.
Special to The Globe and Mail