Eric Fenson (born May 6, 1971 in

Bemidji Bemidji ( ) is a city and the county seat of Beltrami County, in northern Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,574 at the 2020 census. According to 2021 census estimates, the city is estimated to have a population of 15,279, making it ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

) is an American curler. He lives in Bemidji and curls out of the

Bemidji Curling Club The Bemidji Curling Club is a curling club located in the city of Bemidji, Minnesota. It is notable for its long line of champions in many competitions, including men's and women's rinks which represented the United States in the 2005 World Curl ...

. He is a former national champion, and skips his own team.

Career

Fenson began curling at the age of ten. He was a state junior champion and state champion, and competed in the United States Men's Junior Curling Championship, finishing third in 1990 and winning the championship in 1991 and 1992. He won a bronze medal at the

1991 World Junior Curling Championships The 1991 World Junior Curling Championships were held from March 9 to 17 in Glasgow, Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has ...

, which he was named 1991 USCA Male Athlete of the Year for, and finished fifth in

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

. He appeared at his first national men's championship in 1996, and participated in the 1998, 1999 and 2001 national championships, with his best finish as a semifinalist in 1999. In 2003, with his brother

Pete Pete or Petes or ''variation'', may refer to: People * Pete (given name) * Pete (nickname) * Pete (surname) Fictional characters * Pete (Disney), a cartoon character in the ''Mickey Mouse'' universe * Pete the Pup (a.k.a. 'Petey'), a character ...

skipping, Fenson won the national championship and participated in the

2003 Ford World Men's Curling Championship The 2003 World Men's Curling Championship (branded as 2003 Ford World Men's Curling Championship for sponsorship reasons) was held at the Winnipeg Arena in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada from April 5–13, 2003. Teams Round robin standings Round ...

, finishing eighth. The next year, his team finished as runners-up in the nationals to

Jason Larway Jason Larway (born March 23, 1970) is an American curler from Lynnwood, Washington. He is a and a four-times United States men's curling champion (1989, 1992, 2001, 2004). In addition to representing the United States at the , winning the Nat ...

. Fenson then left his brother's team and joined

Scott Baird Scott Baird (born May 7, 1951) is an American curler. At 54, he is the oldest American athlete to ever participate in the Winter Olympics, which he did at the 2006 Winter Olympics. Despite this feat, Baird was only the alternate for Pete Fenson ...

. With his new team, he participated in the

2005 United States Olympic Curling Trials The 2005 United States Olympic Curling Trials were held from February 19 to 26 in McFarland, Wisconsin. The trials determined which teams would represent the United States at the 2006 Winter Olympics. The trials also constituted the 2005 United St ...

, finishing fifth. In 2010, he joined

Mike Farbelow Mike Farbelow (born March 30, 1963, in Saint Paul, Minnesota) is an American curler. He lives in Minneapolis. Career Farbelow began curling in 1977. Farbelow made appearances at the United States Men's Curling Championship in 1985, 1998, 2009, ...

to participate in the nationals, and finished as a runner-up. Fenson, under Farbelow, then attempted to qualify for the nationals in 2011, but did not advance past the

Challenge Round Challenge may refer to: * Voter challenging or caging, a method of challenging the registration status of voters * Euphemism for disability * Peremptory challenge, a dismissal of potential jurors from jury duty Places Geography *Challenge, C ...

. Fenson then formed his own team, and made it through the qualifying rounds of the 2012 National Championships, qualifying for the nationals via the

Personal life

Fenson graduated from

Bemidji State University Bemidji State University (BSU) is a public university in Bemidji, Minnesota. Founded as a preparatory institution for teachers in 1919, it provides higher education to north-central Minnesota. It is part of the Minnesota State Colleges and Univ ...

with a bachelor's degree in business administration. Fenson owns a carpet and upholstery cleaning company. Fenson is married and has two children, Riley and Kylen. He enjoys golf, fishing, travelling, and spending time with his family. His brother,

Pete Fenson Peter Fenson (born February 29, 1968 in Bemidji, Minnesota) is an American curler. He was the skip of the men's rink that represented the United States at the 2006 Winter Olympics, where they won the bronze medal, the first Olympic medal for th ...

, is a curler known for winning the bronze medal at the

2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially the XX Olympic Winter Games ( it, XX Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin, Italy. This marked the second t ...

Teams

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fenson, Eric 1971 births Living people People from Bemidji, Minnesota American male curlers American curling champions Continental Cup of Curling participants