Kevin Martin (curler): Difference between revisions
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At the [[2010 Winter Olympics]], Martin's team was undefeated (9-0) during the [[Round-robin tournament|round-robin phase]], the first male or female team to ever achieve this. They went on to win the gold medal, defeating Norway 6-3, in a rematch of sorts, of Martin's only previous final. |
At the [[2010 Winter Olympics]], Martin's team was undefeated (9-0) during the [[Round-robin tournament|round-robin phase]], the first male or female team to ever achieve this. They went on to win the gold medal, defeating Norway 6-3, in a rematch of sorts, of Martin's only previous final. |
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| ⚫ | Kevin Martin is married to Shauna Martin and has three children, Karrick, Kalycia and Mykaela. He delivers right-handed. He is the owner and operator of Kevin’s Rocks-n-Racquets.[http://communities.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/blogs/bloglines/archive/2009/03/02/inside-brier-stuff.aspx] He has owned his own business since 1991. Prior to that, he was an ice maker. He also runs curling academies at the Saville Sports Centre. He has a resource management degree from the [[Northern Alberta Institute of Technology]]. [http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-curling/athletes/kevin-martin_ath1012597oA.html] |
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| ⚫ | Martin is married to Shauna Martin and has three children, Karrick, Kalycia and Mykaela. He delivers right-handed. He is the owner and operator of Kevin’s Rocks-n-Racquets.[http://communities.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/blogs/bloglines/archive/2009/03/02/inside-brier-stuff.aspx] He has owned his own business since 1991. Prior to that, he was an ice maker. He also runs curling academies at the Saville Sports Centre. He has a resource management degree from the [[Northern Alberta Institute of Technology]]. [http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-curling/athletes/kevin-martin_ath1012597oA.html] |
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== Grand Slam Record == |
== Grand Slam Record == |
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Revision as of 17:37, 1 March 2010
| Kevin Martin | |
|---|---|
.JPG) | |
| Team | |
| Curling club | Saville Sports Centre, Edmonton, Alberta |
| Skip | Kevin Martin |
| Third | John Morris |
| Second | Marc Kennedy |
| Lead | Ben Hebert |
| Alternate | Adam Enright |
Curling career  | |
| Brier appearances | 10 (1991, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009) |
| World Championship appearances | 4 (1991, 1997, 2008, 2009) |
| Top CTRS ranking | 1st (2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08) |
| Grand Slam victories | 11: World Cup/Masters (Jan 2003); The National (Nov. 2004, Mar 2007, Dec 2007); Players (2005, 2007); Canadian Open (2002, 2005, Jan 2007, Dec 2007, 2010) |
Kevin Martin (born July 31, 1966 in Killam, Alberta), nicknamed "The Old Bear" and "K-Mart"[1], is a Canadian curler from Edmonton. He is a four-time Brier champion, has been to three Olympic games and is the gold medal winner in the 2010 Winter Games. He is a former World Champion and has won eleven Grand Slam titles on the World Curling Tour. Over the course of his career, his teams have won around $2 million. He was the first skip to win a "career Grand Slam"—winning a title in each Grand Slam event. He did this after winning Players' Championships Grand Slam event in April, 2005. He is the current Brier champion skip, and was the skip for the gold medal winning Canadian team at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Junior career
Martin began curling when he was six years old. He took up the sport because his father was the vice president of his local curling club.[2] Martin first came on the curling scene in 1985 when his Alberta team of Richard Feeney, Dan Petryk and Michael Berger won the Canadian Junior Championships. This qualified him for the 1986 World Junior championships. The team went undefeated after the round robin. They won their semi-final match against Sweden, but in the final they came up short, losing 7-6 to the Scottish team skipped by David Aitken.
Early career
Five years out of Juniors, Martin had a new team and won his first provincial championship. This qualified him and his team of Kevin Park, Dan Petryk and Don Bartlett for the 1991 Labatt Brier. At the 1991 Brier, Martin finished the round robin with an 8-3 record, tying Saskatchewan for first place. In the semi-final, Martin knocked off British Columbia, and then beat Saskatchewan (skipped by Randy Woytowich) 8-4 in the final. The rink was then off to the 1991 Canada Safeway World Curling Championships in Winnipeg. Martin turned the tables, going undefeated after the round robin. After beating Norway in the semi-final, Martin's team crumbled in the final, losing to Scotland's David Smith 7-2.
His 1991 Brier victory earned him a spot at the 1992 Winter Olympics, where curling was just a demonstration sport at the time. Martin won all three of his round robin games, before losing the semi-final 8-4 to Switzerland and losing 9-2 to the United States in the bronze medal match.
In 1992, Martin won his second provincial championship. His team went 8-3 once again, tying them in second place with Ontario. However, in the semi-final, the Ontario rink, skipped by Russ Howard was too much for the Alberta foursome who lost the match 7-4.
1993-1999
After his two Brier seasons, Martin didn't win the provincial title again until 1995. In the mean time, he had some line up changes, and by the 1995 Labatt Brier rolled around, he had settled on James Pahl as his second, retaining Park and Bartlett on the team. At the 1995 Brier, he placed in third after the round robin with a 7-4 record, tied with Ontario and Prince Edward Island. Martin knocked off Ontario in the page playoffs 3 vs. 4 match, but lost 9-3 to Kerry Burtnyk's Manitoba rink in the semi-final.
In 1995, Martin ditched Park and Pahl, and brought in Don Walchuk and Shawn Broda respectively. Martin won his fourth provincial title, sending him to the 1996 Labatt Brier. The team placed in first after the round robin, finishing with a 10-1 record. However, in the page playoff 1 vs. 2 match, he lost to Manitoba's Jeff Stoughton. In the semi-final, Martin rebounded with a win over Quebec, but the rematch against Stoughton resulted in an 8-7 loss in an extra end, which Stoughton stole.
In 1996, Broda was replaced by Rudy Ramcharan on the team. Martin won another provincial title, and at the 1997 Labatt Brier, he once again finished the round robin with a 10-1 record. His only loss coming to the first place (11-0) Vic Peters rink of Manitoba. However, Martin knocked off Peters twice in the playoffs, including a 10-8 victory in the final. Martin had won his second Brier, and the right to go to the 1997 Ford World Curling Championships. Martin topped the round robin at the Worlds, with a 7-2 record, but lost 6-4 to Sweden in the semi-final and 8-4 to Scotland in the bronze medal match.
In 1997, Martin was looking to represent Canada at the Olympics once again. The 1998 Winter Olympics would mark the first time curling would be a full medal sport at the games. At the 1997 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials, Martin's rink finished with a 6-3 record, tied with Ed Werenich in second place. Martin knocked off Werenich in the semi-final but then lost to the little known Mike Harris in the final, 6-5. For the next few years, the Martin foursome would fail to make it back to the Brier.
1999-2006
In 1999, Martin left Ramcharan, who was embroiled by a scandal where he botched organizing a bonspiel. Ramcharan was replaced by an up start junior curler by the name of Carter Rycroft. In 2000, Martin won his sixth provincial title. However, the 2000 Labatt Brier would be a flop for the team, which finished with a 6-5 record, out of the playoffs.
Following a failed bid to win the 2001 Alberta championship, the team then boycotted the Brier, as prominent curling teams of the day wanted to focus more on the World Curling Tour, while the Canadian Curling Association scheduled events conflicting with major WCT events. In the mean time however, Martin still had his sights set on an Olympic championship. The team went to the 2001 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials, and finished first after the round robin with a 7-2 record. That gave the team a bye to the finals which Martin won, defeating Kerry Burtnyk by an 8-7 score.
At the 2002 Winter Olympics, Martin just lost one round robin matchup. In the semi-final, Martin knocked off Sweden by a 6-4 score. In the final, Martin faced Norway, skipped by Pål Trulsen. In the final end, Martin had a draw against one Norway rock, which he missed, giving Trulsen the gold medal, and giving Martin his third international silver. They lost the game 6-5.
Due to the boycott, Martin's rink wouldn't win another provincial title until 2006. In the mean time, the team had amassed five grand slam titles and won the 2005 Canada Cup of Curling.
Martin played in his third Canadian Olympic Trials in 2005. The event was a disappointment for the team, which finished with a 4-5 record. However, later in the season, they made it to the 2006 Tim Hortons Brier, Martin's first in six years. The team finished the round robin tied in second place with an 8-3 record. However, in the page playoff 3 vs. 4 game, Martin's rink was downed by Nova Scotia's Mark Dacey 8-7.
The team would later however win the 2006 Canada Cup.
2006-present
On April 26, 2006 Martin announced the break up of his long-time, Olympic silver medalist team of lead Don Bartlett, second Carter Rycroft and third Don Walchuk. The team had disappointed at the 2005 Trials, had not won a single Grand Slam title in the 2005-06 season, and topped it off by finishing fourth at the Brier.
Martin replaced Walchuk, Rycroft and Bartlett with World Junior Champion skip John Morris at third, Marc Kennedy at second and Ben Hebert at lead.
His new team won the 2007 Alberta provincials, and at their first Brier, the team finished the round robin with an 8-3 record in second place, tied with Manitoba and Newfoundland and Labrador. The new team struggled at the 2007 Brier in Hamilton, and lost in the 3 vs. 4 game to Jeff Stoughton, 6-3. Despite their Brier failure however, the season was a success on the World Curling Tour, where they won three of the four Grand Slams.
The team won their second straight provincials in 2008, sending them to the 2008 Tim Hortons Brier. On March 13, 2008, Martin's team from Alberta became the first team since 2003 to go through the round robin at the Tim Hortons Brier undefeated. They finished the round robin with a perfect 11–0 record. They knocked off Saskatchewan 8-7 in the 1 vs. 2 game, and then beat rival and defending champion Glenn Howard of Ontario 5-4 in the final. With that perfect finish, Martin won his third Brier title.[1]
Martin finally won his first World Championship at the 2008 World Men's Curling Championship in Grand Forks, North Dakota. After a 10–1 record, he lost to Scotland, skipped by David Murdoch, in the 1 vs. 2 game, only to beat them in the rematch in the final 6-3. This was the first time Kevin Martin won a gold medal at an international curling event [2].
The Martin rink finished the 2007-08 season with two more Grand Slam titles.
Due to his Brier and World Championship win in 2008, the Canadian Curling Association selected Kevin Martin's team (along with Jennifer Jones, Kevin Koe and Stefanie Lawton) to be Canada's representatives on "Team North America" at the 2008 Continental Cup of Curling [3]
The 2008–09 season would almost be just as successful for Martin. He once again qualified for the Brier, winning the Alberta provincial championship, and then once again going 13–0 in the 2009 Tim Hortons Brier. He knocked off Glenn Howard 7-6 in an epic battle followed by Jeff Stoughton in the final by a 7-4 result. A week later, at the 2009 Canada Cup of Curling, Martin won his third title, defeating fellow Edmonton rink, Randy Ferbey in the final.
Martin's attempt at defending his World Championship title, however, was the biggest blemish on his 2008-09 season. Kevin Martin steamrolled over most of the opposition at the 2009 Ford World Men's Curling Championship, winning 10 straight games until he met Scotland in the final round robin game. Martin lost to Scotland, and then lost to them again in the 1-2 page playoff game. Martin rebounded with a semi-final victory over Switzerland, but had to face Scotland in a third matchup in the final. The game was tied going into the last end, with Martin having the last rock advantage. Before his first rock, Martin was lying one, in a complicated setup. After spending about six minutes trying to decide which shot to try, he went against the wishes of his teammates, and threw away his shot, forcing Scotland's David Murdoch to make a double-tap to sit shot. Murdoch made his shot, leaving Martin with a short-raise double, which he missed, losing the championship to Scotland, 7-6.[4]
Martin's team directly qualified for the 2009 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials in his hometown of Edmonton. In his fourth Trials, Martin lost just one round robin game. After defeating the previously undefeated Glenn Howard rink in his final round robin game, Martin got a bye to the final, which was against Howard. The much anticipated clash of arguably the two best teams in the world, turned out to be a dud, with Martin romping Howard 7-3. With the win, Martin earned the right to represent Canada for the second time at the Olympics.
At the 2010 Winter Olympics, Martin's team was undefeated (9-0) during the round-robin phase, the first male or female team to ever achieve this. They went on to win the gold medal, defeating Norway 6-3, in a rematch of sorts, of Martin's only previous final.
Kevin Martin is married to Shauna Martin and has three children, Karrick, Kalycia and Mykaela. He delivers right-handed. He is the owner and operator of Kevin’s Rocks-n-Racquets.[3] He has owned his own business since 1991. Prior to that, he was an ice maker. He also runs curling academies at the Saville Sports Centre. He has a resource management degree from the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. [4]
Grand Slam Record
| Event | 2001–02 | 2002–03 | 2003–04 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 | 2007–08 | 2008–09 | 2009-10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Open | SF | C | SF | C | SF | C | C | F | C |
| Masters/World Cup | QF | C | SF | QF | F | SF | QF | QF | QF |
| The National | DNP | SF | DNP | C | QF | C | C | SF | Q |
| Players' Championships | SF | Q | F | C | F | C | F | SF | - |
Key
- C - Champion
- F - Lost final
- SF - Lost semi final
- QF - Lost quarter final
- Q - Did not make playoffs
- DNP - Did not participate in event
Teams
Awards
- WJCC All-Star skip: 1986
- Hec Gervais Award (Brier MVP): 1997, 2009
- Brier Shot of the Week Award: 1997
- Brier first all star team skip: 1996, 2008, 2009
- Brier second all star team skip: 2006, 2007
- WCT MVP: 2008-09
- WCT Team of the Year: 2008-09
References
- ^ Curling Scoops The 2008 Tim Hortons Brier
- ^ Curling Scoops Gold at last!
- ^ Curling Scoops World Champs Headed to Continental Cup
- ^ Curling Scoops: Scots on Top
Grand Slam web site: http://www.grandslamofcurling.com/