Canada’s Rachel Homan defeated Switzerland’s Silvana Tirinzoni 7-5 on Sunday to win gold at the world women’s curling championship.
Homan made a split to score three points in the ninth end. The Swiss didn’t have a shot for a game-tying deuce in the 10th end and conceded before throwing their final stone.
The win ended Canada’s six-year title drought at this event. It was Homan’s first world crown since taking gold at the 2017 playdowns in Beijing.
Jennifer Jones was the last Canadian to win world gold, finishing first in 2018 in North Bay, Ont.
Homan and her team of third Tracy Fleury, second Emma Miskew and lead Sarah Wilkes picked up where they left off after running the table at the national championship last month.
Canada was 11-1 in round-robin play at Centre 200 and beat South Korea’s Eunji Gim in the semifinal.
That set up the top-ranked Ottawa-based rink for a showdown with the second-ranked Tirinzoni, who had won four straight world titles.
Homan’s side entered with confidence after winning all four head-to-head meetings against Tirinzoni this season. The Canadian also ended Tirinzoni’s 42-game win streak at this competition earlier in the week.
As first seed, Canada started with hammer but the Swiss forced Homan to draw for one in the opening end.
The host team made some small mistakes in the early going.
Miskew hit and rolled out in the second end and Homan’s freeze attempt was slightly off. That allowed Swiss fourth Alina Paetz to make a soft hit for two.
Canada was forced again in the third end and Homan’s final stone undercurled in the fourth to set up a Swiss hit for two.
Paetz was heavy on back-to-back throws in the fifth end to allow Canada to pull even with a pair of its own.
Two blanks preceded an eighth end with rocks in play. Fleury made a hit that rolled frozen on the button and Tirinzoni couldn’t blast out the Canadian stones.
Homan made a hit to sit four and Paetz was forced to draw for one.
In the critical ninth end, Homan made two great shots that turned the game.
Her rocket double-takeout left Canada sitting three. Paetz made a double-takeout that left Canada as shot stone with two Swiss stones on the back of the 12-foot ring.
Canada’s Rachel Homan, left, celebrates with teammates after winning the 2024 World Women’s Curling Championship. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press)
Homan tapped her own rock near the top of the house and both stones rolled in to score three, thrilling the near-sellout crowd of 4,373.
The win improved Homan’s season record to 62-6. She improved to 24-8 in career head-to-head matchups against Tirinzoni.
Earlier, Gim defeated Italy’s Stefania Constantini 6-3 to win the bronze medal.
Homan and Miskew were named competition all-stars at their respective positions. Sweden’s Sara McManus took the nod at third and Swiss lead Carole Howald was named top lead.
Overall attendance at the nine-day event was 45,602. Uijeongbu, South Korea will host next year’s world women’s championship.
The world men’s curling championship begins Saturday in Schaffhausen, Switzerland. Brad Gushue of St. John’s, N.L., will skip the Canadian team.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 24, 2024
Montreal police say they’ve arrested a man in connection with the theft of tens of thousands of dollars in golf merchandise tied to the Presidents Cup PGA Tour being held this week in the city.
Police say that on Sept. 20 and Sept. 21 a person entered a downtown Montreal hotel and stole numerous official items and clothing “from a major golf tournament.”
The tournament is taking place at the Royal Montreal Golf Club in the city’s L’Île-Bizard–Ste-Geneviève’s borough through Sunday.
Police say a 46-year-old man was arrested in downtown Montreal on Thursday and was arraigned Friday on a number of charges including theft.
The accused remains detained until his next court appearance.
Police say the investigation is ongoing to locate the stolen golf items and apparel, adding that anyone with information is invited to come forward.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 27, 2024.
TORONTO – The Toronto Raptors are expected to confirm today that Vince Carter’s No. 15 will be the first number to be retired by the NBA franchise.
Carter will attend an MLSE Foundation event this afternoon at the renovated Vince Carter Court at a park in the city’s northwest end.
Raptors president and vice-chairman Masai Ujiri will also be on hand along with some current players and city officials.
Reports this week said that Canada’s lone NBA team would honour Carter on Nov. 2 when Toronto plays the Sacramento Kings at Scotiabank Arena.
Carter, an eight-time all-star, played parts of seven seasons with the Raptors. He was named NBA rookie of the year in 1999 and won the Slam Dunk Contest in 2000.
He was the Raptors’ first superstar and is credited for raising the profile of the team and igniting enthusiasm for basketball across Canada.
Carter guided the Raptors to the Eastern Conference semifinal in 2001. Toronto had a chance to beat the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 but Carter’s shot at the buzzer hit the rim and bounced out.
He asked for a trade in 2004 and was dealt to New Jersey in a mid-season deal that saw the Raptors receive little in return. The Nets, who are now based in Brooklyn, plan to retire Carter’s number in January.
Carter played 22 seasons in the NBA before retiring after the 2019-20 season. He’ll be enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame next month.
The Raptors are celebrating their 30th anniversary this season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 27, 2024.
NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge hit his major league-leading 58th home run, going deep for the fifth straight game to help the New York Yankees wrap up their second AL East title in three years with a 10-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday night.
Giancarlo Stanton had four RBIs that included his 27th homer, Alex Verdugo also homered and Gerrit Cole outpitched Corbin Burnes in a possible postseason preview. Judge and Stanton homered in the same game for the 14th time this year, tying Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris in 1961 for the most in Yankees history.
New York assured itself a first-round bye and home-field advantage in a best-of-five AL Division Series starting Oct. 5.
Baltimore, which clinched a postseason berth by winning Tuesday night’s opener of the three-game series, will be in a best-of-three Wild Card Series starting Tuesday.
Stanton homered in the second to put the Yankees ahead and hit a three-run double in a six-run sixth.
Judge hit a two-run homer in the seventh against Bryan Baker and has 144 RBIs, the most in the major leagues since Ryan Howard’s 146 in 2008. Judge matched his career best by homering in five consecutive games.
Making his last start before the playoffs, Cole (8-5) allowed two hits in 6 2/3 innings, struck out five and walked one, lowering his ERA to 3.41. He struck out Anthony Santander with a 98.1 mph fastball that ended the eighth after plate umpire David Rackley called a ball on the previous pitch, a knuckle-curve that appeared to be just above the strike zone. Cole glared as the umpire as the pitcher walked back to the dugout.
Cole was given a standing ovation when he walked to the dugout with two outs in the seventh and tipped his cap to the crowd of 42,022.
Burnes (15-9) allowed two hits in five innings, one walk and nine strikeouts — including eight on cutters. Burnes came out after 69 pitches and is likely to start the Orioles’ postseason opener on Tuesday. He had a 1.20 ERA in five September starts.
Stanton lofted a slider at the bottom of the strike zone into the left-field seats after missing badly at a slider on the prior pitch.
Austin Wells, in a 4-for-42 slide, forced in a run when he walked with the bases loaded against Cionel Pérez. Stanton drove the next pitch on one hop to the wall in right-center for a 5-1 lead. Stanton has 72 RBIs after hitting 6 for 18 with two doubles, two homers and eight RBIs in his last five games.
Anthony Rizzo added a two-run single against Baker.
Emmanuel Rivera hit a ninth-inning sacrifice fly for the Orioles.
UP NEXT
Orioles: LHP Cade Povich (2-9, 5.59) starts a series opener at Minnesota on Friday, when LHP Pablo López (15-9, 4.11) will be on the mound for the Twins.
Yankees: LHP Carlos Rodón (16-9, 3.98), 7-2 with a 2.87 ERA since the All-Star break. starts Friday’s series opener against Pirates RHP Jared Jones (6-8, 4.14).
