The week that changes everything: Inside the unique drama of the Montana’s Canadian Trials

Every four years, the Montana’s Canadian Curling Trials deliver one of the most intense, pressurized, emotionally charged competitions in sport. Only one women’s team and one men’s team earn the right to wear the Maple Leaf at the Olympic Winter Games — an opportunity that shapes careers, tests belief systems and demands a level of resilience few athletes will ever need to summon.

To understand what truly sets the Montana’s Canadian Trials apart, spoke with three women who have lived it: Susan O’Connor, 2010 Olympic silver medallist; Dawn McEwen, a two-time Olympian and 2014 Olympic gold medallist; and Lisa Weagle, a two-time Olympian and one of the most accomplished leads in Canadian curling. Between them, they’ve experienced nearly every possible storyline — winning finals, losing finals, navigating pressure, momentum, expectation and the life-changing aftermath of earning the Olympic crest.

In their own words, they reflect on what makes this event unlike any other, how athletes manage the intensity of a four-year build that comes down to a single week and how the moment you realize you’re going to the Olympics stays with you forever.

What makes the Montana’s Canadian Trials so different from any other event in curling?

O’Connor: The Olympics are the epitome of all amateur sport. The fact that you’re preparing and you’re building for this for usually a minimum of four years with a team — ours was even five years. It’s the carrot. It’s the big, golden goal. You train and you work so hard and you sacrifice so many other parts of your life for that long of a time. You just really want to come out and be able to perform under that pressure.

McEwen: It’s just every four years. It’s not an opportunity you get all the time. It creates this bigger pressure for you, an urgency. I could see it on other players and teams that we played. It’s elevated, and it’s a different beast.

Weagle: Getting to go to the Olympics is the big thing and that opportunity only comes up once every four years. When I started curling, I really wanted to go to the Scotties — like the Olympics wasn’t really a thing then — and eventually it became the pinnacle for curlers. The fact that it’s only once every four years and you’re playing all the best teams in Canada in this pressure cooker really adds an element of drama and stress, but also excitement for the players.

How does the pressure of the Montana’s Canadian Trials show up — for yourself and for the teams around you?

O’Connor: There’s a weight on you. We did a lot of work with our sports psychologist about perspective, and I think that really helped us — just the fact that, yes, all these people have supported you for all this time, and you want to do well for them. But also, the people that supported you are going to love you no matter what. We talked a lot about the fact that we had careers and families and friends and a whole bunch of people who were still going to be there for us. We had certainly worked really hard and we wanted to perform our best and leave it all out there, but we truly did buy into the idea that it was going to be okay no matter the outcome. I think that just gave us the freedom to kind of go perform our best out there.

McEwen: I could just see it. I could see the urgency out there. I could see the added pressure. The other athletes were not quite as laid back as I would have seen them in other events. It was very interesting, from my perspective, to see that. By the time I got to my fourth Trials, we felt we had been there, done that in terms of dealing with the pressure. So, it was nice to have that experience and for us to know how to handle these events. We basically created our own little team bubble, our own little team culture, and supported each other 100% and just tried to enjoy it.

Weagle: Just imagine your hopes and dreams for the last four years — but also for your whole life — riding on one event and your performance at one event. Then, when you get to the final, it all rides on how you play in that final. It’s really a mental game… because at this point, everyone is able to throw a rock pretty well and knows all the technical skills. The mental game is really between your own ears and with your own team — it’s how do you protect your peace, how do you stay in your bubble, and not let those distractions get to you?

What is the atmosphere like among competitors during Montana’s Canadian Trials, and how does it compare to events like the Scotties Tournament of Hearts?

O’Connor: Everybody has their game face on. You’re just trying to perform the best you can. There’s definitely a seriousness that falls on the whole thing. Everybody is there to do a job, and you really don’t want to be pulled out of your focus. It’s not social, it’s not jovial, but there’s a politeness. Curling’s such a friendly sport that way. I don’t think there’s a lot of head games but it is serious, because there has been so much effort and work and sacrifice put into performing your best here.

The skill level of curling has grown exponentially, even since we won. I watch it on TV and the shots that would have been highlight reels before are so common now. Everybody’s worked so hard to get the skill level up and to push forward with strategies and shotmaking. It’s going to be so fun to watch. I cannot wait to see who comes out of this year’s Trials, because it’s such a pressure cooker and it’s so exciting.

McEwen: You could just see a bit more tenseness out there than you usually would see these teams have in events. You’re not quite seeing the same laid-back nature or the same interactions. I think it’s important to have those off-ice discussions and just be on the same page and support each other. Everyone’s trying their best, but there’s definitely an added layer of intensity.

Weagle: The field is much smaller at a Trials, and I think the goal is a little bit different. At a Scotties, it’s a celebration of women’s sport and women’s curling. But at the Trials, one team is going to accomplish their goal and everyone else is going to go home disappointed.

The respect and camaraderie is still always there — it’s curling, and sportsmanship is just ingrained in the sport. I don’t think that ever goes away. But certainly, you want to win every game you’re playing in. Most players have their own routines, and it’s probably best if you can stay within yourself and keep your routine. I would say you probably aren’t seeing a lot of players in The Patch after the game. In my past experience, that wasn’t something we were doing.

Describe the moment when you realized you were going to be an Olympian.

O’Connor: It’s a fog. It is a real fog. I remember standing in the house and begging Cheryl’s rock to stop, to please stop. Then, it did. The whole world kind of stopped, but also went crazy at the same time. The building was really loud — it was almost so loud it felt quiet, like it became a din. I just remember really wanting to go see our family, so we sprinted immediately to the sideboards. There’s a video from the stands that one of our friends took, and I still look back at that and get all the feels, because you can feel all the tension with our families, and then their eruption when it stops.

McEwen: For me, it’s happened twice. The very first time, you almost can’t believe it. It’s so exciting — you’re just shaking your body, it’s so exciting. Everything that week was so perfect. We played so well. It’s not too often you get a whole venue full of fans cheering for you in your hometown. Everything was just this perfect ball of everything we could have had for that week, and it was amazing. I’ll never forget it.

Weagle: When the last rock settles and you know you’re going to be an Olympian, it was one of the best moments of my life. It’s hard to describe. It was so, so special to do that in an arena with all of our family and friends there, and with my teammates who I had played with for years. There’s no better feeling. Becoming an Olympian… it changes your life.

What happens after you win the Montana’s Canadian Trials — how does life change as you transition from your own team to being part of Team Canada?

O’Connor: It really did happen almost immediately — you win, you go to doping, and then it’s a while before you go see your family and supporters. The entire next day was meetings: logistics, what the expectations were, the appearances you need to make, and planning everything else. People are also trying to think about their jobs and families and how they’re going to be supported through this whirlwind. I think I slept 15 minutes the night we won. I’d almost fall asleep and then wake up and go, ‘Oh my God, is this really happening? I’m going to the Olympics.’ Suddenly, your team becomes part of a bigger team that becomes part of an immense team — the whole Canadian Olympic Team.”

McEwen: I remember when we went to our first Olympics, we promised each other that we were going to enjoy every aspect of the Olympics — we were almost like fans. We would try to go to all the games we could. Being part of a bigger team was so cool and so unique. We enjoyed it and made the best of it for sure.

Weagle: You get swept up in this whole machinery of Curling Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee. You’re used to just operating as a little curling team; now you’ve got all this support and more people who are part of your bubble trying to help you perform. I feel very fortunate to have been able to go to the Games twice. The depth in Canada is so strong that we were always told if you’re going to go to the Olympics, it’s probably only going to happen once, so make sure you go and soak it up and enjoy it.

Jolene Latimer is a member of the Women in Curling executive.