Players seek transparency from Curling Canada after pregnancy exemption uproar

A Canadian interim rep for the Curling Players' Association has renewed a call for improved transparency and collaboration with Curling Canada after an uproar about pregnancy exemption rules resulted in an about-face from the organization.

"This is a classic example of a situation where I think if the players had been consulted, we might have come to a better ruling earlier," Team Homan's Emma Miskew said Monday.

After three days of outcry from several high-profile curlers, Curling Canada changed its exemption rule last Friday so that any team in this year's 18-team national championship field could apply.

Some players, including Casey Scheidegger — just outside the cutline at No. 6 — said they only learned of the option when Curling Canada issued a news release last Tuesday to unveil the Scotties Tournament of Hearts draw and schedule.

By Thursday, Curling Canada had changed its policy to include all teams starting at the 2024 national playdowns. A day later, amid continued criticism, the organization took it a step further and allowed all 2023 Scotties teams to apply.

"The players in general in Canada were not consulted or it wasn't brought to a lot of people's attention prior," Miskew told The Canadian Press from Ottawa. "I think that's the biggest problem that we have in the sport right now is that so many decisions are made and the players are just told.

"They're not asked for their opinion. It's not just about this, it's about everything."

Curling Canada unveiled an initiative in September 2021 to enhance the high-performance consultation process with athletes. Ten elite-level curlers — including Brendan Bottcher, Jocelyn Peterman and Shannon Birchard — are involved with Amy Nixon serving as board liaison.

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