Trish Bibby and Jacquie Swiderski were far from the most conventional team at the 2025 2-Person Women’s Stick Curling Provincials, but that didn’t stop the pair from taking home the provincial crown.
Swiderski was the oldest player at the event while Bibby was the youngest. In an interview with the Daily Herald, Bibby says she approached Jacquie about giving stick curling a try and the rest is history.
“Jacquie is 80 and I’m 43. Jacquie curls at both the Christopher Lake Curling Club and the Prince Albert Golf and Curling Centre, and we met there. Jacquie and I have competed against each other a few different times, but I was really interested in trying stick curling. Jacquie has been using the stick for her delivery for several years, and I thought with her experience and passion for the game, there is absolutely nobody better to learn this way of throwing from. I asked Jacquie if she would consider being my partner, and the rest is history.”
One major difference between stick curling and the traditional game is the use of a throwing device. In traditional curling, players will release the rock from a sliding position along the ice. In stick curling, rocks are thrown from standing upright position.
Bibby says there are other rule changes that change stick curling the traditional game.
“Traditionally, curling is played with four players, with each of the four players delivering two rocks per end in a traditional delivery, then accompanied with sweeping as well. Stick curling is an adaptive version of the traditional game where there’s only two people on a team. We only play six ends and there are six rocks per end. Each player throws all six rocks per end. l’ll throw six rocks in one direction and then Jacquie will throw six rocks back in the other direction. There’s no sweeping in this game between the hog lines. It’s quite a quick game. It is adaptive. We use a stick to deliver our rock instead of a traditional slide.”
While stick curling is commonly associated with those with physical disabilities or impairments that prevent them from executing a traditional delivery, both Bibby and Swiderski say the stick game is accessible to players regardless of age or physical ability.
“I think that it’s vitally important that people realize that stick (curling) is not just for people that are unable to throw the traditional way.” Swiderski explained in an interview. “Trish has been trying to get a league, an active league, of all ages of people using the stick. It’s like having another sport, both on ice, but it’s different then throwing with the slide delivery. I think that there should be more people taking up the use of the stick. Older people can do it, but young people can do it too.”
The stick curling provincial championship had special meaning for Swiderski on an individual level. She has been involved with the sport of curling for over seven decades, on and off. She had never won a CurlSask provincial championship until winning the stick championship alongside Bibby.
“I was just thrilled to win the stick provincial because I was going to quit curling two years ago.” Swiderski says. “Trish asked me to curl in the stick provincials with her last year. I was so thrilled because she’s so young and I’m so old and I was thrilled that she asked me. I decided I would continue to keep playing. At the provincials in Regina,I was the eldest and she was the youngest of all the women curlers there. We’re kind of an uneven match in that sense, but we got along exceedingly well.”
“It was awesome. We curled a little bit together in Prince Albert last year. We didn’t go to the provincials because Trish is a teacher and they had the strike going on and she couldn’t go. I picked up another person from Prince Albert and went and we did well there, we didn’t win it, but we did well. Trish and I, we just got along so well together and it was funny because so many times we wouldn’t have to ask any questions.”
Swiderski also took home the 2025 Masters Provincial title this past weekend with Moose Jaw alongside her younger sisters Sherry Anderson and Avis Halcro.
“I’m in my 80th year, and I’ve been trying to win a provincial all of my life.” Swiderski says. “I won a provincial with the SSFA in the spring, in the late spring, and got to go to Quebec City for the Nationals and then I won the stick provincials with Trish, and now I’ve won the Masters provincial with my two sisters. We used to curl together 35 years ago, and because of one thing or another, we have not curled together for 35 years, so it was pretty special.”
Swiderski will be traveling to Sault Ste. Marie in Ontario for the Masters Nationals which is happening at the same time as the 2-Person Stick Curling Nationals. Because of the scheduling conflict, Swidersku and Bibby have declined their invitation to Nationals.
sports@paherald.sk.ca
