With trials and a hometown Brier on the horizon, Gushue motivated for final season

Of all the victories, moments, titles and podium appearances that Brad Gushue has experienced over his legendary curling career, his team's ability to be a consistent contender for two-plus decades is something that stands out for the Canadian skip.

"Just the longevity," Gushue said Thursday on a video call with reporters. "The fact that we've been able to stay at or near the top of the game for such a long time, keep that motivation at [a high] level and go through how the game has evolved over the last 25 years.

"I think that's something that I'm very proud of and I think that's something that's hard to achieve."

The 45-year-old Gushue, from St. John's, N.L., announced Wednesday that the 2025-26 season would be his last in competitive curling.

WATCH | Gushue announces 2025-26 season will be his last:

Curling superstar Brad Gushue announces retirement following 2026 season

In a video post, he said the decision was "about my family and my team," and that he's "missed enough milestones to know I don't want to miss any more."

"I was afraid I was going to cry on this media availability, but I'm not sure I have any tears left, to be honest," Gushue said. "It's been an emotional process, but it's been phenomenal."

When Gushue steps away next year, he'll leave as one of the sport's all-time greats.

He told third Mark Nichols, second Brendan Bottcher and lead Geoff Walker about his plans at a team training camp last week.

Nichols, his longtime vice-skip, said they were aware Gushue was thinking about retirement but felt it was still "kind of hard to hear it."

"It's a decision that he had to make himself and we're fully supportive," Nichols said. "This season is going to be full of emotion now, even more so than it would