Canadian women's curling championship gets go-ahead in Thunder Bay
A players broom rests beside a rock directing a teammate where to aim for at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Calgary, Alta., Sunday, Feb. 21, 2021.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
The Canadian women's curling championship has the green light to proceed in Thunder Bay.
The 18-team Scotties Tournament of Hearts at Fort William Gardens opens Jan. 28 without fans or media in the building because of the COVID-19 virus.
Ontario announced Thursday up to 500 fans will be allowed at sporting events starting Jan. 31, leaving the door open for the possibility of spectators the final three days Feb. 4-6.
"Curling Canada is erring on the side of caution and will not admit fans into the building during the round robin even though public health guidelines allow it," the national governing body of curling said Thursday in a statement.
Two pools of nine teams will be seeded based on their position in the Canadian Team Ranking System (CTRS) as of Jan. 10 and play an eight-game round robin.
The top three teams in each pool advance to playoffs with the second and third in each crossing over for Page playoff qualifier games Feb. 4. The victors meet the winner of each pool for Page playoff seedings.
In the Page, the winner of the game between the top two seeds advances directly to the Feb. 6 final, while the loser meets the winner of the playoff between the third and fourth seeds for a berth in the final.
The winner represents Canada at the women's world championship March 19-27 in Prince George, B.C.
Pool A consists of wild-card teams skipped by Tracy Fleury, Chelsea Carey and Emma Miskew as well as Penny Barker (Saskatchewan); Krista McCarville (Northern Ontario); Andrea Crawford (New Brunswick); Suzanne Birt (Prince Edward Island); Sarah Hill (Newfoundland and Labrador); and Brigitte MacPhail (Nunavut).
Pool B is comprised of Laura Walker (Alberta); defending champion Kerri Einarson; Mackenzie Zacharias (Manitoba); Hollie Duncan (Ontario); Kerry Galusha (Northwest Territories); Mary-Anne Arsenault (B.C.); Laurie St-Georges (Quebec); and Hailey Birnie (Yukon).
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 20, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Woman with disabilities approved for medically assisted death relocated thanks to 'inspiring' support
A 31-year-old disabled Toronto woman who was conditionally approved for a medically assisted death after a fruitless bid for safe housing says her life has been 'changed' by an outpouring of support after telling her story.
School police chief receives blame in Texas shooting response
The police official blamed for not sending officers in more quickly to stop the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting is the chief of the school system's small police force, a unit dedicated ordinarily to building relationships with students and responding to the occasional fight.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
Russia asserted Saturday that its troops and separatist fighters had captured a key railway junction in eastern Ukraine, the second small city to fall to Moscow's forces this week as they fought to seize all of the country's contested Donbas region.
Truth tracker: Does the World Economic Forum influence governments like Canada's?
The World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos was met with justifiable criticisms and unfounded conspiracy theories.
Calling social conservatives dinosaurs was 'wrong terminology', says Patrick Brown
Federal Conservative leadership candidate Patrick Brown says calling social conservatives 'dinosaurs' in a book he wrote about his time in Ontario politics was 'the wrong terminology.'
Fact check: NRA speakers distort gun and crime statistics
Speakers at the National Rifle Association annual meeting assailed a Chicago gun ban that doesn't exist, ignored security upgrades at the Texas school where children were slaughtered and roundly distorted national gun and crime statistics as they pushed back against any tightening of gun laws.
She smeared blood on herself and played dead: 11-year-old reveals chilling details of the massacre
An 11-year-old survivor of the Robb Elementary School massacre in Uvalde, Texas, feared the gunman would come back for her so she smeared herself in her friend's blood and played dead.
Quebec mosque shooter ruling could affect parole eligibility in other high-profile cases
The Supreme Court of Canada’s ruling allowing the Quebec City mosque shooter to be eligible for parole after 25 years is raising concern for more than a dozen similar cases.
Jury's duty in Depp-Heard trial doesn't track public debate
A seven-person civil jury in Virginia will resume deliberations Tuesday in Johnny Depp's libel trial against Amber Heard. What the jury considers will be very different from the public debate that has engulfed the high-profile proceedings.
Regina
-
Regina Public Schools remain offline, cyber attack confirmed
Cyber security attacks happen every day, and as Regina Public Schools division discovered this week, no one is safe.
-
'Very upset': Senior housing residents plead for Sask. Housing Corporation to rebuild after winter fire
Former residents of a Carievale seniors housing complex want the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation (SHC) to reconsider its decision to demolish the home.
-
Western Premiers' Conference focuses on healthcare funding from Ottawa
Premiers from western Canada met to discuss healthcare in their first face-to-face meeting in more than two years in Regina on Friday at the 2022 Western Premiers' Conference.
Saskatoon
-
Saskatoon man says three dogs ‘tried to kill his dog’ at off-leash dog park
Barrett Ross says his dog Indy suffered a punctured bowel, lost a tooth and had his stomach injured when he was attacked by three other dogs.
-
Saskatoon's temporary downtown shelter granted extension
The Saskatoon Tribal Council's (STC) temporary downtown shelter has been granted an extension to operate at its present location until April 2023 — but Tribal Chief Mark Arcand hopes to relocate well before then.
-
Prince Albert police lay murder charge after pedestrian fatally injured by vehicle
A pedestrian injured by a vehicle in Prince Albert has died.
Northern Ontario
-
Sudbury’s Bell Excellence Award winners survived during difficult times
Thursday evening, the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce hosted the 25th annual Bell Business Excellence Awards.
-
Walking in Sudbury to mark the discovery of unmarked graves in B.C.
On Friday, there was a walk in Sudbury to remember the remains of 215 residential schoolchildren found in Kamloops, B.C., a year ago May 27.
-
Sault Métis Centre excited for grand opening
Staff at the new Sault Metis Centre are getting set for the grand opening Saturday.
Edmonton
-
UCP accused of sending warning to Edmonton councillors as EPS funding decision delayed
A hotly-controversial decision on whether or not to freeze base funding for police in Edmonton was delayed Friday as fallout from a dispute between the mayor and the provincial justice minister continued to rattle political circles.
-
Shooting near Rogers Place playoff party witnessed by EPS officers
A 19-year-old man is in police custody after a shooting near Rogers Place after an Edmonton Oilers viewing party ended Thursday evening.
-
Wetaskiwin temporary shelter to close ahead of schedule leaving some in a lurch
A shelter many expected to remain open until the end of June in Wetaskiwin, Alta., will close a month early.
Toronto
-
WATCH
WATCH | New video appears to show man carrying air rifle on Toronto streets before being killed by police
A man shot dead by police officers near a Toronto elementary school on Thursday afternoon appears to have been captured on home security footage carrying an air rifle moments before the incident.
-
Police investigating suspected hate-motivated incident involving armed man at Jewish school
A 21-year-old Toronto man is facing a slew of charges following a suspected hate-motivated incident at a Jewish school in North York.
-
Here's why you may notice unusual activity around Toronto Pearson Airport this weekend
Toronto Pearson International is warning travellers and Mississauga residents they may notice unusual activity at the airport this weekend.
Calgary
-
'Grave injustice': SCC ruling could change sentence for Alberta's multiple murderers
A southern Alberta man who killed three people, including a two-year-old girl, could have the ability to request a release from jail earlier than his original sentence intended, thanks to a landmark Supreme Court decision Friday.
-
'No way we're cheering for the Oilers': Flames fans react to Game 5 loss
Calgary Flames fans are still coming to terms with a playoff series loss to the Edmonton Oilers Thursday night in a game that saw both controversy and heartbreak following a Connor McDavid overtime goal.
-
Canada's premiers want to reform health-care system, asks Ottawa to pick up the phone
Western Canada's premiers want to reform their health-care systems by expanding services but they say Ottawa first needs to pick up the phone.
Montreal
-
Three things most likely to be legally challenged in Bill 96
Is it unconstitutional to make someone pay to get a legal document translated into French? One of Montreal's top lawyers thinks so, and pointed out two other things from Bill 96 that he thinks the courts would most easily find fault with.
-
Good Samaritan pulls 83-year-old Montreal man from St. Lawrence: Police
A man in his 80s is fighting for his life after being pulled out of the St. Lawrence River by a fellow resident who saw his vehicle had become submerged.
-
Crews dislodge chemical-carrying ship in St. Lawrence Seaway
A large ship carrying chemical products ran aground during its passage through the St. Lawrence Seaway early Friday morning, backing up maritime traffic as tugboats tried to dislodge it.
Ottawa
-
Here's what we know about the storm cleanup in Ottawa today
Hydro Ottawa is not committing to a new deadline to restore power to thousands of customers, one week after a devastating storm with wind gusts of 190 km/h hit Ottawa.
-
Remote parts of rural eastern Ontario could wait weeks for power restoration
A Hydro One spokesperson says some people living in remote parts of rural eastern Ontario could be waiting weeks to have power restored after last Saturday’s devastating and deadly storm.
-
What you need to know about Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend
It's the first in-person Ottawa Race Weekend in Ottawa since 2019, after the 2020 and 2021 events were shifted online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Atlantic
-
Cape Breton teen in hospital after falling nearly 40 feet over cliff in Glace Bay
A Cape Breton father is warning the public of the dangers in the area he lives after his teenager son fell nearly 40 feet over a cliff in Glace Bay.
-
More than 18 hours to find five N.S. mass shooting victims was 'deficient': lawyer
A lawyer for families of victims killed in the Nova Scotia mass shooting says an 18-hour delay in finding five bodies of those murdered is a sign of "deficient" policing.
-
Supreme Court decision could affect Justin Bourque’s sentence: Lawyer
The lawyer who represented a man who murdered three RCMP officers nearly eight years ago in Moncton, N.B., said a decision made by the Supreme Court of Canada Friday may potentially change his sentence.
Kitchener
-
Guelph high school volleyball referee facing multiple sex assault charges
A man, who was a referee at high school volleyball games in Guelph for more than 30 years, is facing sex assault-related charges.
-
Region says high safety risk at Kitchener encampment, residents will have to move
The Region of Waterloo says there's a high safety risk at a Kitchener encampment and they are working with residents to prepare them for their eventual move.
-
Swoop says it can't offer flights from Region of Waterloo airport due to deal with Flair
Two low-cost airlines are butting heads over an agreement at the Region of Waterloo International Airport. Swoop wants to offer flights but the airport already has an exclusivity deal with rival Flair Airlines
Vancouver
-
After years waiting for surgery, B.C. woman considering medically assisted death
A B.C. mom with a rare, debilitating illness has spent years trying to get the help she needs. Now she's considering medical assistance in dying.
-
Interior, Island and North led B.C.'s decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations this week
The number of COVID-19 patients in B.C. hospitals hit its lowest point in more than a month this week, and the decline was driven largely by regions outside the Lower Mainland.
-
Small Vancouver startup believes it's created the solution to plastic pollution
Researchers working in partnership with UBC believe an eco-friendly material could help solve the world’s plastic pollution problem.
Vancouver Island
-
B.C. speedboat driver arrested with 650kg of meth 'feared for his family's safety,' he told U.S. investigators
New details are emerging after a 51-year-old Alberta man was arrested aboard a speedboat that U.S. authorities say was carrying 650 kilograms of methamphetamine between Washington state and British Columbia.
-
Vancouver Island hospital suddenly shuts down ER due to staff shortage
The emergency department at Port McNeill Hospital unexpectedly shut down on Friday evening due to a staffing shortage.
-
Mill Bay mall fire closes Trans-Canada Highway
At least one building was destroyed Friday afternoon as firefighters rushed to a large fire at the vacant Pioneer Square Mall in Mill Bay, B.C.