New Zealand Curling

Winners L-R: Simon Neilson, Dave Greer, Nelson Ede, Peter Becker

23 Feb 2015 – The summer bonspiel made a comeback at Dunedin Ice Stadium over the weekend.

The bonspiel is a relaxed event designed to bring curlers of all types and ages together and this year's event was described by organiser Dan Mustapic as a great success.

"It was good to see hack, stick and crampet curlers competing together, from Auckland, Wellington and the south" said Mustapic, a member of the New Zealand team that attended the 2006 Winter Olympics.

Korea men beat China 5-4. Photo: © NZ Curling / Ashleigh Smith

24 Jan 2015 – New Zealand's Women secured the bronze medal on the final day of competition at the Pacific-Asia Junior Curling Championships 2015 in Naseby, Central Otago.

Korea’s Men and Women have qualified for the World Junior Curling Championships after their wins in the gold medal games

Both Korean side won semi-finals earlier in the day to face China. The Chinese sides had direct entry into the final after topping their round robin leaderboards.

Plenty of local support (Photo USCA)

8 Dec 2014 – The harsh reality of the World Curling Federation's updated world rankings hit home for New Zealand's Curling teams at the just-completed US Curling Grand Prix.

The made-for-TV event featured Men's and Women's rinks from the USA, China, Japan, and New Zealand competing at Minnesota's Fogerty Arena, home of the Four Seasons Curling Club.

The Kiwi sides were the lowest-ranked there, and both finished true to their rankings at the tail of the field – but there were some encouraging moments in their tournament. The Chinese sides, both highest-ranked at 5th in the world, won both events.

Photo © Richard Gray / WCF

15 Nov 2014 – New Zealand's curlers will be returning home empty-handed from the 2014 Pacific-Asia Curling Championships in Karuizawa, Japan.

The Kiwi Women's team of Chelsea Farley, Thivya Jeyaranjan, Tessa Farley and Eleanor Adviento, with alternate Waverley Taylor and coach Liz Matthews, lost their bronze medal game against the Japanese side of Ayumi Ogasawara today.

After an even start, Japan scored 3 points in the fourth end and then stole another 2 to take a 7-2 lead into the fifth end break. NZ patiently blanked the sixth but were then held to just one point in the next. The teams traded singles before Japan ran NZ out of stones in the last end to win the match and the bronze medal 8-4.

In the Women's gold medal match, China stole the extra end to win 7-6 and hand Korea their only loss of the week. With their title, the Chinese also won the right to play in the 2015 World Women's Championship. Japan automatically qualified as hosts.

Pacific-Asia delegates, including Hong Kong and Qatar, at the 2014 World Curling Congress. Photo: WCF

24 Oct 2014, Perth, Scotland – The World Curling Federation (WCF) has formally accepted the Hong Kong Curling Association and the Qatar Curling Federation as conditional Member Associations.

Their acceptance follows a statutory period of consultation with existing Member Associations since the annual World Curling Congress in Reno, USA in September 2014.

Part of the Pacific-Asia Curling zone, both Hong Kong and Qatar will be supported as they continue to work towards establishing the sport of curling in their respective countries.

2014 Auckland champions Cleansweep Photo: Liz Matthews / Auckland CC

13 Oct 2014 – The Cleansweep side of Chelsea Farley, Thivya Jeyaranjan, Tessa Farley, Ryan Lewis and Eleanor Adviento were rewarded for their consistency when they won the 2014 Auckland Premier League. They beat Liz Matthews' Thistles 7-4 in Sunday's Grand Final.

The result was earned after three top-four finishes for the side in the last 4 years, including topping the preliminary round last year and a runner-up finish in 2010.

It was the best possible end to the domestic season for the Farley sisters, Jeyaranjan and Adviento before they and Waverley Taylor represent their country at next month's Pacific-Asia Curling Championships.