2 years ago...

... Team Bernard squad became Olympians. On December 12th 2009, in Edmonton on a cold winter evening, Team Bernard warmed up the Rexall arena and recorded a 7-6 win at the Roar of the Rings to get a ticket to the Olympics 2010. They were the underdogs, but had proven all week that they belong there. Great tournament, aggressive play, some unbelievable shots. I am working on a video right now to rememorize that great final but till it’s done, you can review the entries I’ve made about this unforgettable tournament here: videos, comments, articles, best shots and great pictures.

Your favourite article

I suppose you can see it coming : one of your favourite article talks about this famous victory of Team Bernard at the Olympic Trials 2009 « The Roar of the rings ». They were the blackhorses, and god knows I love underdogs and this squad was rocking the house more than any other teams. That's the article below! :)

Just because...

A wink and a smile to a close past – when Cheryl Bernard and her squad won the Roar of the Rings.

Best Shots – Uncut

That was close - such an awesome shot!

Best Shots – Uncut

The unforgettable "Roar of the Rings" 2009.

Team Bernard's Epic Journey

I have images starting from 2006, but technology improving with time, I decided to start where the life of Team Bernard's members changes forever...

Roar of the Rings Epic

Still working on that video, some more images from the Roar of the Rings. I will never forget that match. What a game!

Roar of the Rings Epic

From the Roar of the Rings - The fantastic four!

Roar of the Rings Epic

What you will see, or not see on my Epic Tribute to Team Bernard. Coming up soon! From the Roar of Rings Final.

Roar of the Rings

All smile! That was one hell of a tournament.

Remembering the Roar of the Rings

The Canadian Curling Association (CCA) today announced that Winnipeg will stage the 2013 Tim Hortons Roar of the Rings Canadian Curling Trials, which will determine Canada’s representatives for the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

It is a good moment to go back in time and review some of the best of moment of the 2009 Olympic Trials. See my special treat on the 2009 Roar of the Rings here which included pictures, articles, scores and stats, the best shots and more. I also added the last point, the uncut version, as it happened, and some very nice screen captures below.

A Special Day

The day is not over, it is still June 30th and as mentioned on yesterday's post, today, it is Cheryl's birthday. Do birthdays have to be special? Hope Cheryl had a special one down there in Calgary as she deserves the best.

A day that will remain special forever for Cheryl and her team, and for us, who follow them for quite a while, it is the day they won the Olympics trials. I found this little video that would close beautifully this day and start on a high note Canada day. It is amazing the things that can be found out there.

Smiling Treat - Roar of the Rings

There is always going to be things to add and to say about the «Roar of the Rings», as i still got videos, screen caps and many pictures to share, but there are so many things to talk about that i am going to keep some bits for later. It is always going to be great to remember this great victory of Team Bernard and how they managed to show the world that dreams do come true when we work for them and believe in them. To close it out on a high note, until we remember it again, here’s all “smile” treat.



And while we are there, a little video of a very strong victory of Team Bernard over Team Jones. That night, Cheryl was on fire.

Phone Interview with CBC after the Roar

Few days after their win at the roar of the rings on December 12th, Cheryl took the time to talk on the phone with CBC to give her comments. Of course, it wasn’t like having Cheryl herself on the studio, but it was really nice of her to do so.

He asked many things but here are some highlights of their conversation. They talked about how long it took for them to realize that that was it, they were going to the Olympics.

"You know, so much stuff is going on since we won but I think it finally sank it the other day when i said we are going the Olympics, we are Olympians now and that something, you know, you can take away, it is going to be the ride of a lifetime".

They talked about the fact that they were the favorite to win that trials and what was the impact on their game.

"It doesn’t help you much focusing on the other team we were a little bit flying under the radar which is a nice spot to be".

They talked about their upcoming schedule and how they are going to prepare for the Olympics.

"It is going to be crazy, it is gonna be a crazy schedule, but we got a lot of strong teams around, and Olympics experienced athletes to help to us be the best we can be when we’ll hit Vancouver".

I added some screen caps from the images displayed during the interview, for your pleasure, and my own!

The Right Team Won

In eastern Canada, we don’t have as much as curling on TV then in the western cities, but it was impossible to miss the Roar of the Rings review at the news in December and to cheer for Cheryl Bernard and her team cumulated win after win and finally get the coverage they deserve. It had been an amazing run - covered in the latest posts. They were going there as the underdogs and as the week passed by, more and more people joined us and wanted them to win, seduced by the skilled and talented team. Thanks for the magic, Team Bernard. And everything you've been through the last few years finally payed off.

Cheryl on her team mates

The members of Team Bernard always stick together as a team. And Cheryl Bernard, as their Skip, never forgets to thanks her teammates and is extremely grateful for their support. When Cheryl smiles after a great shot she makes, it is her appreciation to them to have set the table for her.

Susan is teaming up with Cheryl for almost 10 year now as Cori and Carolyn joined them in 2005. It wasn’t always easy, losing some tough final. But that made them stronger as they had to work hard and changed their vision along the way to finally mixed together the perfect ingredients to reach stability, control and success. Every member brings something special to team making it well balanced and so strong.

"Cori's a very light person, very social, and I think as much as (the other team members) sometimes find that difficult it's the best for us because she does keep it light out there and she can crack a joke and we don't tend to be that way," she says.

Bernard called Darbyshire, who's three years older than the skip, "the mom on the team" because she tends to take charge of the planning and looks out for the members of the squad.

As for O'Connor, Bernard said it's her drive and work ethic that make her such an attractive teammate.

"You put four of the best players together and sometimes you're not friends. But we seem to have got lucky to have a little bit of both," says Bernard.

Getting to know... Cheryl Bernard

To conclude the “getting to know’” series of the past few days from the Roar of the Rings event, let’s see if they were able to reveal few things we didn’t know on the skip of team Bernard, Cheryl Bernard herself.

It had been said before, and publically exposed; Cheryl Bernard got her tattoo on her right forearm. Stay tune for more details on our ladies in future posts.

Getting to know... Susan O'Connor

To continue on the Roar of the Rings spirit of the latest post, let’s see which information they were able to gather then on Susan O’Connor, the very skilled third of Team Bernard.

Of course, there is a lot more to tell, but let’s start with that. That, and yep, Susan also did get a tattoo for their Olympics qualification.

Getting to know... Carolyn Darbyshire

Keeping in mind yesterday post, today, let’s get a little closer from Team Bernard Second, Carolyn Darbyshire by reviewing the confidences she made during the Roar of the Rings.

She was heading to the Olympics as one of the most experienced curler, which made of her the oldest Olympian, but that doesn't mean much: she was probably one of the fittest curler out there and you gotta be fit to deliver a stone like she does.

Getting to know... Cori Bartel

Since I have been following them for a while, I always suppose that everybody knows about them. But if you pass by, or you are new around, there might be slight details, funny or serious, that you would enjoy discovering about our Ladies. During the last edition of the Olympics trials, Roar of the Rings, Team Bernard answered some indiscreet questions regarding some of their habits and such. Today, let’s get to know a little bit more about our favorite Lead, Cori Bartel.

That was about 5 months ago, so yeah, there might be slight changes, like, hey, she got a tattoo now!