Canada's Curling Champions Prepare for Unique World Championship Field in Utah
Fresh from their national triumph at the Brier, Canada's curling champions have had little time to celebrate as they gear up for the 2026 LGT World Men's Curling Championship in Ogden, Utah. The tournament begins this Friday, featuring a field that skip Matt Dunstone describes as "not your regular teams" compared to past world championships and recent Olympic competitions.
From Brier Victory to World Stage
Team Dunstone's schedule has been relentless since their victory in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador three Sundays ago. After one day of celebration on Monday, they returned home Tuesday afternoon and spent Wednesday fulfilling media requests. Following an off-day Thursday, they resumed training on Friday to prepare for the intense competition ahead.
"We have been going steady for eight, nine days," said Dunstone in the hours leading up to Friday's opening match against Korea. "But we're feeling well-rested. I think the time-span between the Brier and the worlds was perfect. It was short enough to stay really excited and stay on that high and enough time to get the rest that's necessary to be rejuvenated and ready to go."
The Journey to Utah
The team flew to Salt Lake City early Tuesday and attended an NHL game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Utah Mammoth later that day. On Wednesday, they made the drive up to Ogden, where the world championship will be hosted.
"And then it's pretty much show-time," added Dunstone. "We've got pre-event practice Thursday, and then the ol' meat grinder starts on Friday." The skip was speaking on behalf of teammates Colton Lott, E.J. Harnden, and Ryan Harnden, all prepared for the grueling competition ahead.
An Unusual Championship Field
The 2026 World Men's Curling Championship features a distinctly different lineup from both past world championships and the recent Olympic Winter Games in Italy. Only four rinks overlap from the 2026 Olympics: China's Xiaoming Xu, Czechia's Lukáš Klima, Germany's Marc Muskatewitz, and Sweden's Niklas Edin.
Italy's representation has changed significantly, competing without skip Joël Retornaz while swapping their lead and alternate curlers. Notably absent are defending champion Bruce Mouat of Scotland and last year's finalist Yannick Schwaller of Switzerland.
"Yeah... it's definitely not your regular teams that you've seen at the worlds prior," agreed Lott, whose rink knocked off Olympic champion Brad Jacobs at the Brier to prevent the Calgary crew from attempting a rare Olympic-worlds double this year.
"We've played a lot of these teams," continued Lott. "We know what they're about. Like this Scottish team, they're equivalent to Mouat — Whyte's a very good team."
Preparation and Mindset
The condensed timeline between the Brier and world championship has created a unique challenge for the Canadian champions. While they've had minimal downtime, the team believes the schedule has maintained their competitive momentum while allowing sufficient recovery.
As they face what Dunstone calls "the ol' meat grinder" beginning Friday, Team Dunstone enters the tournament with confidence born from their recent national victory and familiarity with many of the competing teams, despite the unusual composition of this year's world championship field.
