Team Clendenan

According to Roger Staubach, “Spectacular achievements are always preceded by unspectacular preparation” which is a testament to the importance of practice, no matter how mundane. On rare occasions, however, an opportunity presents itself which allows an athlete to deviate from predictable training and to embrace a different kind of hard work which is cleverly disguised as fun.

The World Curling Federation (WCF) is the wold governing body of Olympic Curling which internationally facilitates the growth of the sport. Together with the German Curling Association (DCV), the WCF proudly sponsors the the Hummelt Junior Curling Camp in Fussen Germany and in doing so affords 120 lucky athletes the chance to work on their deliveries, sweeping techniques, strategy, practice plans, ice reading, mental preparation and much more which aspiring curlers routinely work on.

About as far away (both literally and figuratively) from mundane practice as you can get, Grace and Emma joined forces with a handful of other Canadians who in turn teamed up with representatives from dozens of other countries to benefit from Hummelt’s summer curling training in July. Despite hours and hours of fitness, practice drills and brain stretching, not a single complaint was uttered and in fact the unanimous consensus was to plot a way to get back for more punishment . . .er rather fun . . . as soon as logistically possible.

Suffice to say that whether it was the schnitzel or the coaching, the new friends or the tweaked mechanics, the WCF appears to have it all figured out in as far as balancing hard work and fun which kind of spoils Stauback’s reference to training ALWAYS being unspectacular. Additionally, he’s never met our girls and seen the smiles that they bring to their training – in Europe or otherwise – and that is an achievement in and of itself.

Vielen Dank, dass sie Deutschland!