The world’s top men’s curlers will be in Moose Jaw this weekend for the Men’s World Curling Championship – with Brad Jacobs from Team Alberta representing Canada after winning the Brier earlier this month in Kelowna.
Jacob’s team includes Regina-born Ben Hebert, who has played in Briers before in his home province, but never on the world stage.
“I’ve been in Alberta 20 years now and I still think the best sports fans are in Saskatchewan, not just curling fans but sports in general,” Hebert said on Monday.
He added that after competing in the 2024 Brier in Regina he was reminded of just how many people he knew in the Queen City’s curling scene.
“When I got to the [2024] Brier I saw so many people that were supporting me and it was great to see them and many are older now and they’ve got kids and I expect to see them all in Moose Jaw cheering us on and I look forward to sharing all of those great moments with them and my teammates,” Hebert said.
Canada will open the event Saturday afternoon against Japan – followed by an evening draw against Germany. They’ll hit the ice for practice before that on Friday.
Teammate Marc Kennedy joked that the group has been referring to Hebert as the “Premier of Saskatchewan” because they expect to see a large section of fans come out to cheer on the Regina product.
“He’s going to have all of Saskatchewan behind our team which is terrific,” Kennedy said. “I’ve been really lucky to have Ben as a teammate for almost 20 years and I am going to cherish the opportunity to get on the ice with him and the maple leaf again.”
-With files from Lee Jones
