USA CURLING WHEELCHAIR NATIONAL TEAM QUALIFIES FOR 2022 PARALYMPIC GAMES
© WCF / Alina Pavlyuchik 2021
The road to 2022 is demanding, but for the Wheelchair National Curling Team (Matthew Thums, Steven Emt, David Samsa, Oyuna Uranchimeg, and Pam Wilson), it was not guaranteed as the American squad needed to first qualify for the World Wheelchair Curling Championship through the World-B Wheelchair Curling Championship to earn Paralympic Qualification Points.
Following an impressive gold-medal victory at the World-B Championship in October, Team USA advanced to the World Wheelchair Curling Championship taking place this week in Beijing, China.
To qualify for the 2022 Paralympics, Team USA needed finish in seventh place or higher in the standings or above Italy at the conclusion of the 2021 World Wheelchair Curling Championship.
In yesterday’s win over Latvia, Team USA moved to a 6-3 record after nine games of round robin contest, securing the United States’ berth to the 2022 Paralympic Games by guaranteeing a finish ahead of the Italians.
The qualification to the Games was the Team’s first goal of the tournament, but they remain determined to bring home hardware.
“USA has qualified for the Paralympics, but we’re still focused on winning a Championship,” said USA Curling Wheelchair National Team Director Pete Annis. “The final day of the round robin is tomorrow and with a strong finish, we’ll secure a playoff spot.”
Team USA will face Slovakia (2-7) and Scotland (6-3) in the final two games of round robin play.
USA Curling is sponsored by Columbia Sportswear, Toyota, Twin Cities Orthopedics, Training HAUS, Brakebush, ISS (Ice, Sports & Solar), and Sitrin, and is partnered with IHG, Rock Solid Productions Inc., Laurie Artiss Ltd. – The Pin People, and United Airlines.
