Scandal in the team of world curling champions

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It is actually a dream season for the Swiss curling team around Skip Silvana Tirinzoni (43). But barely six weeks after the historic fourth world title in a row, there is a major scandal in the world champion quartet. The team throws out player Briar Schwaller-Hürlimann (29) in no time.

It happens in Regina, Canada, where the final tournament of the season will be played this week as part of the Grand Slam series. On Sunday, Schwaller-Hürlimann will travel straight from the Mixed Doubles World Cup in South Korea to Canada, where she will be amazed by the team meeting on Monday. Tirinzoni and Alina Pätz (33) and Carole Howald (30) divorce the daughter of Olympic curling champion Patrick Hürlimann (59).

Deported on arrival in Canada

Six weeks ago there were still four World Cup heroines. Now three to one. “That came as a big surprise to me,” says Schwaller-Hürlimann to Blick. What happened? “It was said that it was due to the team harmony. But we never had a discussion about that’, describes the Zugerin, still audibly agitated three days after his throw-out.

Skip Tirinzoni told Blick: “Telling Briar has been one of the hardest things in my career. We really like her as a person. But we noticed that she thinks differently than we do in many areas. That could be a problem in the longer term be with our goal of the Olympics.”

Schwaller-Hürlimann was ruled out when she was offered to play the tournament this week despite the scandal. She immediately flies home. This week she replaces Canadian Rachel Erickson (24) for a short time.

This is how Tirinzoni explains the timing of the eviction

Tirinzoni defends the odd timing. “I am aware that the dismissal during the last tournament still seems strange. But it was the least bad option,” says the Zurich woman.

The decision was made about eight days ago. But at the Mixed World Championships in Korea, they didn’t want to confront Schwaller-Hürlimann with it. “We didn’t want to lie to her during the last tournament either.”

Tirinzoni contradicts the ex-teammate that there were no signs that despite the World Cup victory there was a problem anywhere. “Our coach and a teammate had long conversations during the season.”

How the shocked Schwaller-Hürlimann will continue next to her 70 percent job as a teacher on the ice, she does not yet know: “I will definitely continue to play mixed doubles with my husband Yannick. I have not yet thought about my future in four-man curling. “

Source : Blick