Zacharias Sisters’ Legacy and the 2025 Provincial Curling Championships
Three years ago, Mackenzie Zacharias and her team made a significant mark on Manitoba’s curling history by capturing the provincial Scotties title in December 2021. This victory was not only an important milestone for the team but also occurred during an Olympic year, adding extra weight to their accomplishment. In a unique scheduling adjustment to avoid overlapping with the Winter Olympics, the curling championships were held earlier than usual, setting the stage for a memorable provincial final.
Zacharias’ team, which also included her sister Emily, had previously achieved international success in 2020 by winning the World Junior Curling Championship. In the 2021 Manitoba Scotties final, they defeated the highly respected Kristy Watling’s team, but the real shock came with an unexpected upset: Tracy Fleury’s squad, still reeling from their loss in the Olympic Trials, failed to make the playoffs. For many fans and curling enthusiasts, this provincial win by the Zacharias sisters felt like the beginning of a bright new era in Manitoba curling.
However, fast forward to 2024, and the curling landscape for the Zacharias sisters looks very different. Both Mackenzie and Emily appear to have stepped away from the competitive curling scene, signaling the close of a chapter for their once-prominent team. Their former teammates, Karlee Burgess and Lauren Lenentine, who had been integral parts of their success, are also now having a quieter season, playing with the Chelsea Carey team. This shift in the team dynamic has marked the end of an era, one that once captivated the curling world with their youthful talent and fierce determination.
As the curling world moves forward, the focus now shifts to the 2025 Canadian provincial championships, which will be held earlier than usual to avoid clashing with the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina. With the next Olympic cycle on the horizon, the season will be more compressed than ever, with many provinces hosting their women’s and men’s provincial championships in January.
The 2025 Canadian Provincial Championships Schedule
The 2025 provincial championships will kick off in early January, with events in both the women’s and men’s categories taking place across Canada. Here is a detailed look at the schedule for the upcoming season:
- Nunavut
Women/Men: Jan. 9-12, Location TBC - Yukon
Women/Men: Jan. 9-12, Whitehorse - Quebec
Women/Men: Jan. 13-19, Alma - Nova Scotia
Women/Men: Jan. 15-19, Halifax - New Brunswick
Women: Jan. 15-19, Saint Andrews
Men: Jan. 29-Feb. 2, Fredericton - Northwest Territories
Women/Men: Jan. 15-20, Yellowknife - Newfoundland and Labrador
Women/Men: Jan. 16-21, St. John’s - British Columbia
Women/Men: Jan. 20-26, Langley - Saskatchewan
Women/Men: Jan. 20-26, Kindersley - Manitoba
Women: Jan. 21-26, Pilot Mound
Men: Feb. 4-9, Portage la Prairie - Northern Ontario
Women/Men: Jan. 21-26, Thunder Bay - Ontario
Women/Men: Jan. 21-26, Cobourg - Prince Edward Island
Women/Men: Jan. 22-26, Bloomfield - Alberta
Women: Jan. 22-26, Rimbey
Men: Feb. 5-9, Stettler
The dates for the 2025 provincial championships are slightly adjusted this year to fit into a compressed timeline, leading up to the national championships. The 2025 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the Canadian women’s curling championship, is scheduled to run from January 23 to February 1, while the 2025 Tim Hortons Brier (men’s national championship) will be held a week earlier, from February 27 to March 8.
This year’s provincial season will be the final "normal" one before the next Olympic cycle, which promises to impact the timing and structure of subsequent seasons due to the 2026 Winter Games. Teams across the country will be vying for a spot in the national championships, and the 2025 provincial events will be crucial for setting the stage for the next Olympic cycle.
A New Era in Canadian Curling
As curling fans eagerly anticipate the upcoming provincial championships, there is a clear sense that the landscape of Canadian curling is shifting. The end of the Zacharias sisters’ reign in Manitoba and the adjustments to the provincial schedule reflect larger changes happening within the sport. The timing of the 2026 Winter Olympics will inevitably impact the calendar, pushing curling events into earlier months and creating an even more compressed season for players and fans alike.
As we look ahead, the 2025 provincial championships will be a key moment in the ongoing evolution of curling in Canada, with new talent and rising stars poised to take the spotlight. The Zacharias sisters' historic win in 2021 will be remembered as one of the key moments in Manitoba curling, but as the next generation of curlers steps up, the excitement for what’s to come remains high.
