Public Health greenlights N.L. men's provincial curling championships

Public Health has given the Newfoundland and Labrador Curling Association the go-ahead for the 2022 provincial men's championship games, known as the Tankard.

Nineteams from across the province will viefor the provincial title,withcompetitionbeginning Tuesday afternoon.

"All our teams are really stoked about being able to play," said Harold Walters, the president of the association and general manager of the St. John's Curling Club.

Under modified Alert Level 3, which the province enteredMonday, amateur sports teams can practise and train, but can't hold competitions betweenteams. But Walters said Public Health approvedtheir exemption to hold the tournament onFriday afternoon.

Walters said he's delighted that the teams can play for the championshipbut theTankard comes amid a tough time for the province's curling clubs.

"The revenue loss is just devastating,"Walters said, notingpandemic protocols have resulted in the curling club making littlerevenue, with the bar closed and the rink open only for practices for a small number of teams.

"We're a winter sport and we've got a very small window from now until basically the middle of May to make our money."

Walters said the strict pandemic rules are still in place for the Tankard games, with no spectators allowedand no bar service, measures he says will limit the club's ability to make some money.

"It's really, really difficult," he said.

Walters said it can be hard to understand why other businesses have fewer restrictions surrounding their operations compared to the tournament.

"Compare that to some of the restaurants and bars that are around, who can open up and you can go in and you can sit down for two to three hours at a time and laugh and carry on and drink and watch a game."

He said this lossof revenue since the pandemic began poses a big problem forcurling club managers like himself, with overhead costs like light bills, insurance, and snow clearing fees still coming in.

"None of that goes away in the winter time just because you're shut down," Walters said.

Club finances have also been impacted by cancelled events, he said, addingthat their summer events havebeen cancelled for two years in a row, as well asthis year'sScotties tournament.He said the women's tournament was supposed to goahead last month, but when the province shifted to Alert Level 4 as the Omicron variant swept through the province, those plans were cancelled.

As the gamesgetunderway, hesaid some ofthem will be streamed online for fans to watch and he says there should be some good competitions this week while Brad Gushueand team are representing Canada at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games.

"When Brad's in [the Tankard], he's been very tough to beat," said Walters."But this year,it could be anyone's game."

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