Team Canada finishes sixth at the 2025 World Wheelchair Mixed Doubles Curling Championship

In a hard-fought quarterfinal game against Team Japan, Team Canada, represented by Ina Forrest (Spallumcheen, B.C.) and Mark Ideson (London, Ont.), came up short for the first time at the 2025 World Wheelchair Mixed Doubles Curling Championship in Stevenston, Scotland, on Saturday morning.

The 7-6 Japanese victory was Canada’s first loss in the tournament after finishing the round robin 6-0.

It also meant that Canada’s bid to qualify for the eight-team mixed doubles competition at the 2026 Winter Paralympics in Milano-Cortina, Italy, fell just short.

“We had a great round robin,” said Ideson. “We put ourselves in a good position coming into the quarterfinal. Japan had a great game; we just had a couple of unfortunate outcomes.”

The game was close from the first end and made for an exciting morning of curling at the Auchenharvie Leisure Centre. The game went into the seventh end with a 5-5 score before Japan called its power play to take two.

In the eighth end, the pressure was on Ideson’s last shot against a threatening Japanese stone with the potential to score three and take the game. Ideson’s shot successfully moved Japan’s rock but his shooter rolled just too far and only earned one point for Canada.

“The sheet was a little bit different than expected and shots weren’t always going our way,” said head coach Dana Ferguson. “We just couldn’t capitalize today, but this result does not undermine Ina and Mark’s skill or successes. We’ve learned so much, and I’m happy with how Canada was represented this week.”

The team was supported by team leader Kyle Turcotte, physiotherapist Sari Shatil, and team physician Dr. Gordon Ngo.

“I have nothing but admiration for the way Ina and Mark have embraced the daunting challenge of securing Canada’s qualification for the Mixed Doubles event at the Paralympics,” said Kyle Paquette, National Program Director. “Their performance this week is a testament to their remarkable preparation throughout the season.”

The pressure was on for Forrest and Ideson to secure enough points to qualify Canada for the 2026 Milano Cortina Paralympic Games, and they were in a tough field of 21 countries with the same goal.

“We are incredibly proud of both of them,” said Paquette. “We are also grateful for Dana and Kyle and the extended support staff for their unwavering support of the team this season. In high-performance sport, you come to understand that it is not always fair or just—but I have no doubt that our National Program is in a great place. We will continue to push boundaries in our pursuit of being the leading nation in wheelchair curling.”

World Curling will officially announce the full Paralympic field in the coming days.