In the Hunt!

Ontario #1’s Dominique Vivier carries home field advantage to quarterfinal berth at 2024 Canadian Under-18 Curling Championships

It’s not the first-time skip Dominique Vivier has donned a provincial jacket at a national curling competition, but this one is proving to be extra special.  

Not only is Vivier, the 2023 Northern Ontario Under-21 Women’s Champion, leading Team Ontario #1 at the Canadian Under-18 Curling Championships, her and her team, composed of vice-skip Brooklyn Ideson, second Toula Pappas, lead Sydney Anderson, alternate Katrina Frlan and coach Phil Mainville, are doing it as hometown hosts. 

And after downing the Yukon’s Hadley Callan (0-6; Whitehorse) 16-0 on Wednesday evening, the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club based squadron has Pool B’s top slot locked up, guaranteeing a quarterfinal berth.  

Vivier says that finding her team’s stride at these U-18s has been a result of focusing on the process, rather than hinging success on a singular outcome.  

“We’ve been going at it with process goals instead of the ‘ultimate’ goal,” said Vivier after the win. “So, we’re going little by little now, game by game. One at a time.” 

Part of that process, albeit a critical one, has been assembling this team with its current roster. 

“Brooklyn (Ideson) was kind of the first to start off the team,” said Vivier. “We had been messaging for a couple of years and we decided this was the year since it’s both our last year in U-18.” 

And while Ideson’s vision for the team’s roster has come to fruition, there were additional geographical hurdles to clear. Vivier studies at Wilfrid Laurier University living in Kitchener, while Ideson studies at Western University in London. Pappas lives in Peterborough, and Anderson hails from Greely, in the Ottawa valley. 

When it came to choosing a curling facility to represent, the ball was firmly in the air before the team settled on the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club for one simple reason: 

“Syd (Anderson) has played out of the Hunt Club her entire life and they’ve been really supportive of junior curling,” said vice-skip Brooklyn Ideson. “So, it seemed like the right option.”  

Ideson’s summary of the club’s support for curling is indeed correct. The Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club already has a proven track record of investing in curling over the last decade in hosting both elite teams and events, as well as a substantial adult learn-to-curl programme.  

Including co-hosting these 2024 Canadian Under-18 Curling Championships alongside the RA Centre, the Ottawa Hunt has hosted the 2010 Canadian Senior Curling Championships, the 2014 and 2015 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials, and most recently, the 2015 and 2021 Canadian Curling Club Championships. 

Vivier’s Team Ontario #1 isn’t the only team to be representing the Ottawa Hunt at a national championship this year either. Team Danielle Inglis will be representing the six-sheet facility at the upcoming 2024 Scotties Tournament of Hearts at Calgary February 16 – 25.  

“She’s another inspiring woman out here doing it as well,” said Vivier of Inglis. “I played against her last year and, of course, they beat us, but it’s been nice to see those people make it to the top.” 

Seeing top female athletes excel is always welcomed, says Vivier, especially when celebrating her team’s win on National Girls & Women in Sports Day on Wednesday. 

“I play a couple other sports as well, and I have to say, curling has been the best sport when it comes to equal opportunity for men and women. Even on live TV, we see men and women as the same. It’s really inspiring to see those women.” 

With a direct bye into a quarterfinal, Team Ontario #1 will take a breather and reflect on their successes that have brought them to this point, with high hopes of a medal finish at these U-18s. 

In other female pool action, Team Ontario #2’s Ava Acres (5-0; Ottawa) is feeling  right at home alone atop Pool A while Nova Scotia #1’s Rebecca Regan (5-0; Lower Sackville) leads Pool C with an unblemished record. 

Live scoring and standings for the 2024 Canadian U-18 Curling Championships are available at curling.ca/scoreboard.  

Live-streaming coverage of selected games at the 2024 Canadian Under-18 Curling Championships will be available on Curling Canada +, Curling Canada’s streaming platform. You can access the broadcast schedule by CLICKING HERE.