Mat Camm, second from left, was all smiles at a send-off ceremony for the M&M Meat Shops Canadian junior championship in Calgary. But it was heartbreak at the tournament as his team came within millimetres of winning.
The Ottawa Curling Club is getting a reputation of producing young talent capable of competing on the national and international stage.
Mat Camm, 20, was millimetres short of bringing back yet another prestigious title to his home club in Ottawa.
In the thrilling final of the M&M Meat Shops Canadian junior championship in Calgary on Feb. 6, Team Ontario – led by Skip Camm – lost to Team Saskatchewan 8-7 in extra ends.
The contest reached its pinnacle when both teams' stones were so close that it was unclear who won in overtime.
With the last stones lying side by side, the officials called for a measurement to see which was closer to the button. Unfortunately for Camm, Team Ontario fell just short.
Despite the heartbreaking loss, Camm attributes some of his success to training at Ottawa’s oldest curling club.
“They’re just so supportive,” he says.
“They provide a lot of stability and great ice anytime you want. That’s hard to find.”
Team Ontario also had two other members from the Ottawa Curling Club participate in the national championships – lead Andrew Hamilton and second David Mathers.
The team was rounded out by Scott Howard, son of the three-time world champion Glenn Howard.
But members of Team Camm are not the only young stars from Ottawa’s oldest club.
Rachel Homan, 21, is the first skip to win the Ontario women’s championship in her first season after completing her junior eligibility.
By winning that tournament in January, she will now represent the province at the national women’s curling championships, the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, from Feb. 19-27.
Homan skipped rinks to the Ontario junior women’s titles in 2009 and 2010.
She was also the national junior champion in 2010 and runner up at the world junior championships last year.
OCC Board member Joe Pavia says the reason the Ottawa Curling Club is producing successful junior curlers is because they allow their younger members to participate in adult leagues when most other clubs do not.
“The juniors want to get in the league so they can get stiffer competition,” he says.
“It gives them a chance to play better games.”
The club holds an open league every Wednesday evening.
Club professional Earle Morris says it’s one of the most competitive leagues around.
It boasts top-flight players such as former world champion Craig Savill, former Canadian champion Jean-Michel Menard, and 2005 women's national runner-up Jenn Hanna.
Morris, who coaches Team Homan, says the level of play in the league helps show junior curlers what it takes to win at the sport’s top ranks.
“It helps them become more comfortable playing at the com petitive level,” he says.
“When they go to a regional, provincial or national championship, they’ve got confidence that is good for them.”
Camm says that playing professionals in the challenging Wednesday night league helped develop his curling.
“You just have to be so precise,” he says. “When you play in that league you have to be bang on.”
Even though the experience from playing with elite curlers in Ottawa helps, Morris says Camm’s national runner-up finish will help the team even more.
“When they go to a national the next time, there’ll be a level of confidence there that can help them win it all,” he says.