The former members of the Colleen Jones rink overcame many obstacles to become the best women’s curling team in the world a decade ago.
Jones, Kim Kelly, Nancy Delahunt and Mary-Anne Arsenault won five Canadian titles and two world championships during that dominating period from 1999 to 2004.
Such success came at a price. The demanding toll from maintaining their game at such a high level led to the team disbanding after the 2006 season and its members seeking less strenuous curling challenges.
But time off appears to have restored that competitive edge.
It was revealed in a weekend Canadian Press story that Jones has agreed to join Kelly and Arsenault next season on a rink skipped by Arsenault. Delahunt will play a role but not as an active competitor; she’ll help the team in an off-ice capacity. Jenn Baxter will fill the fourth playing slot.
The rink’s skip says the veteran members of the team have a renewed passion and desire.
"Kim has been off for a couple of years and just came back this year to play with us, she’s really got her competitive edge back," said Arsenault, adding that no one would ever question the infamous competitive streak in Jones. "And, for somebody as young as (Baxter) is, she’s really got the fire. She fits in perfectly.
"I think the time apart was just what the doctor ordered. It allowed for a new enthusiasm for the game and what goes into winning. I’m certainly honoured that Colleen wishes to play for me. We’ll see how things go. If I don’t meet the challenge, we certainly have a great last-rock thrower on the team."
Their goal is to nail down a berth at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia. The Olympics is the most notable prize that eluded the Jones rink when it was at its peak.
Does this comeback effort have a reasonable shot at reaching such a lofty goal?
No matter how great the rink once was, it has been a long time since it was a dominant team on the world or even national stage. Jones is past 50 and Kelly is near 50. Arsenault is in her early 40s. Only Baxter, at 24, has her best curling years ahead of her.
And simply getting out of Canada to qualify for the Olympics is a massive challenge.
Yet this remarkable group of athletes shouldn’t be counted out. They have shown in the past what they can do when they commit to the highest goals. They love challenges in which they’re the underdog. And they’ve long had an ability to turn negatives into positives because they believe so strongly in their own collective talents.
For example, Arsenault insists the age of the rink’s most veteran members will be a plus, not a minus.
"With the years come experience and the ability to know things you don’t know when you are 20 or 25," she says. "I really think it is an enhancement. Also, we know how well we work together.
"Really, both Kim and Colleen are in incredible physical shape. They are in better shape than a lot of 30-year-olds. So I really don’t think that age is a factor."
Win or lose, it’ll be fun for Nova Scotia curling fans to watch these veterans, together again, on the comeback trail. Hopefully, they’ve retained the same passion and talent that made them such great champions.
And if they show that, then maybe, just maybe . . .
Chris Cochrane is a sports columnist with The Chronicle Herald and the author of Inside the Game.
