As promised, even though the Scotties are over, I'm
updating the blog with some extra information I gathered during the week but
didn't have time to post.
Before the Scotties began, I emailed teams who I
could get contact info for and asked them some questions. Thanks to Lisa
Weagle (Ontario), Sarah Wazney (BC), and Stacie Devereaux (Newfoundland &
Labrador) for responding to all my questions. Thanks also to Mary-Anne
Arsenault (NS) for taking the time to answer a couple of questions.
This is what Sarah Wazney of British Columbia had
to say.
Sarah said it feels pretty sweet representing BC at
the Scotties. This was here first appearance at the Scotties and she
couldn't be more proud to represent BC. She was very excited about going
to Kingston. "It's a dream come true!" she added.
She said her expectations this year were looking
for a playoff spot and then see what happened after that. I asked how the
team manages being elite athletes with their careers and families.
Sarah's response was, "Having support from family and friends is so
important."
She thinks everyone that went to the Scotties had
the World Championships on their mind. They knew that it was still a long way
away. "It's key to dial into each game and see where you are at the end of
the round robin." she added.
She said that her favourite thing about curling was
that it is a team sport and she loves spending time with the ladies on her
team. She likes practicing, travelling and competing with them.
Sarah said that her favourite hobbies outside of
curling are cooking, baking and gardening. She also likes playing golf in
the summer.
They don't have a team that they don't
like playing the most. She thought that there would be a lot of
tough games and possibly a few extra ends.
Sarah played a lot of different sports during
Junior High but curling was her favourite and she started putting more
time into it. It then became her priority!
She joined the team because Kelly Scott,
Jeanna Schraeder and Sasha Carter were looking for a lead and they put on a
Nation-wide search. She sent them an email saying that she was
interested.
She grew up watching the Sandra Schmirler rink,
Jennifer Jones, Stephanie Lawton and of course, Kelly Scott's rink!
They prepared for the Scotties with a lot of
practice. "Practice, practice, practice!" Sarah said.
She said that she gets nervous before big competitions and big games.
She has learned to breath and zone in.
I asked Sarah how the team felt about sharing
personal information with the fans and she responded, "Depends on
what is being asked!" She also likes the fact that curling is a
very fan accessible sport.
I appreciate Sarah taking the time before such an
important competition to answer my questions. I had the opportunity to spend
sometime with BC during the week because I was their junior star. They
were all so nice!
Team BC performed quite well in Kingston ending up with a Bronze medal.
Congratulations to Kelly, Jeanna, Sasha, Sarah, Diane and Coach Brent!
