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Less than 110 days before the start of the Paralympic Games in Milan Cortina, wheelchair curler Collin Joseph feels more confident and free throwing stones, which are thrown using a sticking instead of sliding on ice.
Four years ago, his role as a substitute at the Beijing Games was more limited. Then, at age 56, he appeared in one game, but helped Canada’s mixed team to a second straight bronze medal at offering commentary on how the rocks behaved on the ice to lift his teammates’ spirits when facing adversity.
Joseph had previously competed in it first provincial championship win in 2009 and captured his first Ontario title as a skip in 2016. He represented Canada for the first time in 2019, the first of four world championships.
In China, Joseph quickly discovered the difficult role of being a substitute.
“It’s difficult because if you’re in that [Paralympic] level, you’re already a competitive person,” Joseph said Monday at CBC Sports headquarters in Toronto, where the Ottawa native was among five athletes named to Canada’s wheelchair curling team for the March 6-15 Games in Italy.
“You want to be part of the team and do something that you feel is a benefit to the team and part of a winning environment. Finding a way to do that as a substitute is incredibly difficult.”
This time, Joseph will start as Canada’s lead, joining jumper Mark Ideson, second Ina Forrest, third Jon Thurston and alternate Gilbert Dash, a multiple national champion making his Paralympic debut.
“Knowing that I am named titular leader [for Milan-Cortina] It leaves me in a position to accept some of the mistakes I make and any missed shots, knowing that I have another chance to make up for it. “It’s a much more comforting feeling,” he said.
Alternatively, Joseph told CBC Sports that it’s easy to lose confidence when you’re unsure of your status for the next game.
Canada head coach Mick Lizmore noted that in many ways these Games will feel like the first for Joseph and Thurston, who will also be participating in their second Paralympic Games, as they will experience them with their own fans. The Covid pandemic prevented Canadians from attending the 2022 Paralympic Games.
Thurston’s takeaway leads Canada to Olympic bronze
“As one becomes more exposed to multi-sport Games, it becomes much more comfortable to compete in the [world-class] stage,” Lizmore said. “I see one person in Collina who feels more comfortable having a runoff.”
In the 2022 bronze medal match, Thurston passed the final stone past a guard to score four in an 8-3 victory over Slovakia.
“He certainly looks like a player who’s been around for a while,” Lizmore said of Thurston, 41, of Dunsford, Ont. “Four years later, he is in a position to be at a high level.”
Italy will be the fourth Paralympic for Ideson, who will celebrate his 50th birthday two months after the medals are awarded.
Forrest, 63, is heading to his fifth Paralympic Games. He won gold in 2010 (Vancouver) and 2014 (Sochi, Russia) before adding bronze four years later in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Ideson describes the Spallumcheen, BC, native as “our team leader” who improves the play of her teammates. Forrest is also co-captain of Canada’s 2026 Paralympic team.
“I’ve learned a lot from her. She’s the most professional person,” he said. “She puts in the hours and when she says something, it’s worth listening to because it makes a lot of sense and comes from a place of deep thought.
“Ina definitely leads by example and is a great person to be around. She loves to have fun and stay relaxed.”
Forrest seeks a better Paralympic experience
There’s a good reason why the likeable Forrest has returned for other Games.
“Beijing did not feel like the [Paralympics] “To finish,” he said. “The family wasn’t there, and it wasn’t the experience you thought would be your last.”
Dash, a native of Kipling, Sask., helped Canada to a silver medal in his 2023 world debut and has since added bronze and silver. He played second in the first two tournaments and was not present this year. The renewed Canadian team has played 15 international matches together and could add 15 more before traveling to Milan-Cortina. On Tuesday the athletes will travel to Prague for another tournament.
“Spend time together,” Ideson said. “Time watching premieres [of shots]time working on communication. “We have good communication.”
Lizmore noted that the team is a good mix of veteran talent and a close-knit group that cares a lot about each other.
“One of the fantastic things about the group in general is this relentless pursuit of the highest levels of performance,” the coach said. “They’re always looking to find a new way to improve.”
Canada, which has won medals in wheelchair curling at every Paralympic Games since 2006, opens the Milan-Cortina tournament on March 7 against Italy.
