The Ontario skipped rink of John Base, along with third Bruce Webster, second Dave McAnerney and lead Jim Donahoe won the Canadian title and then went on to win the 1983 World Junior Curling Championship with a win over Norway in the final. Base was selected as the all-star skip at the world championship.
Base went on to lead teams to Ontario's provincial men's championship on nine occasions, and has enjoyed a successful career on the World Curling Tour, winning the tour championship in 1994.
Saskatchewan's representatives at the 1982 national championship were skip Doug Marks, third Craig Koch, second Tracy Leader, lead Scott Mazinke, and coach Harvey Mazinke.
Swift Current further whet their appetite for high level curling as hosts of the 1993 Canadian Mixed Curling Championship.
Nova Scotia started a near dynasty of claiming the Canadian Mixed Curling Championships, with the province winning their first ever national mixed title in Swift Current in 1993 and going on to win six championships over the next 17 years, including the 2010 championship skipped by Mark Dacey of Halifax.
The 1993 mixed championship team boasted skip Scott Saunders, third Colleen Jones, second Tom Fetterly and lead Helen Radford.
It was the second national championship for elite curler Jones, who had previously skipped a Nova Scotia rink to a national title in 1982.
Jones, who also earned a Canadian Mixed Championship in 1999, has enjoyed a dominanting career on the national and international stage.
The Nova Scotia skip earned five Scott Tournament of Hearts Championships in a six year span (winning the Scotties in 1999 and 2001-2004), and claiming both the 2001 and 2004 Ford World Women's Championship.
Back in 1993, Jones and her rink scored a final rock 6-4 win over the Alberta team skipped by Terry Meek to win the national championship.
In addition to Meek at skip, the Alberta rink boasted the presence of Cheryl Bernard at third.
Bernard skipped Team Canada to a silver medal performance at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver.
Bernard had previously appeared at the Scotties in 2007 and 1996, and her rink won the 2004 Canadian Women's Curling Tour Championship.
Also in the field of competitors was Quebec's Guy Hemming, who was a breath of fresh air on the men's curling scene when placing as runner-up at the Brier in 1998 and 1999 and then returning to the national men's stage in 2001 and 2003.
PEI's rink boasted Susan McInnis at third, and she went on to win PEI's women's championship as a skip in 1996, and she was a member of teams that won provincials in 1998, 2003, 2004, and 2006.
Manitoba representatives included Karen Purdy who was a Scotties runner-up in 1989 and 1994, plus Dale Duguid who represented Mantioba at the 1998 Brier.
Swift Current's ice had a break from high level competition until they jumped back on the curling scene with a two year committment as host of the Dynamic Curling Classic, a stop on the World Curling Tour.
Back in 1994 Swift Current hosted the Dynamic Classic cash bonspiel, with a series of top teams from across the prairies attending.
Rob Ewen from Janzen claimed top prize money of $14,000 with a win over Alberta's Mickey Pendergast.
Placing third was Eugene Hritzuk, the 1988 Saskatchewan men's champion, who went on to win the 2008 Ford World Senior Men's Championship.
The inaugural Dynamic Classic also featured an appearancy by the Sandra Schmirler rink, and the women's team reached the playoff round in the cash bonspiel.
Schmirler won Saskatchewan Scotties titles in 1997, 1993 and 1991, and went on to be crowned Scott Tournament of Hearts champion in 1997 and back to back in 1993-94. They also had the distinction of claiming three World Women's championships.
Schmirler's influential team also had the distinction of placing as gold medalists at the 1998 Olympic games during the first year curling was an official medal sport at the olympics.
Then in 1995 the community hosted their second and final Dynamic Classic, with the event going out with a bang thanks to a victory by Rick Folk.
Folk, who was curling out of Kelowna, was Saskatchewan men's champion in 1978 to 1980.
He earned the distinction as the first skip to win the Brier Championship for two provinces, skipping Saskatchwan to a victory in 1980 and winning a Brier for B.C. in 1994. During those two years as Canadian champion, Folk also curled his way to Men's World Curling Championships to crown his year.
With this proud heritage of top curlers performing in Swift Current, it would not be a surprise if there are not a Hall of Fame calibre team or two on the iPlex ice during this upcoming week.
sanderson@swbooster.com
