Megan Balsdon (born May 10, 1982 in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
) is a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
curler. She currently plays
third
Third or 3rd may refer to:
Numbers
* 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3
* , a fraction of one third
* Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute''
Places
* 3rd Street (d ...
on Team
Hollie Duncan
Hollie Duncan (born January 6, 1987 in Toronto, Ontario as Hollie Nicol) is a Canadian curler. She currently skips her own team on the World Curling Tour.
Career Juniors
As a bantam-aged curler, Duncan skipped her Unionville Curling Club rin ...
.
Career
In 1998, Balsdon won the Ontario Bantam Mixed championships playing third for skip Bobby Reid. In 2001, she won the
Pepsi Ontario Junior Curling Championships The Ontario U-21 Curling Championships (until 2016 called the Ontario Junior Curling Championships) is an annual curling tournament. It is the provincial curling championship for curling teams aged 20 and under in Southern Ontario. The winning team ...
playing third for
Carrie Lindner. The team represented Ontario at the
2001 Canadian Junior Curling Championships, finishing with an 8-4 round robin record. The team would place third after losing to Prince Edward Island's
Suzanne Gaudet
Suzanne Birt (born Suzanne Gaudet on October 2, 1981 in Summerside, Prince Edward Island) is a Canadian curler from Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. She currently skips her own team on the World Curling Tour.
Career
Juniors
Birt, a skip, ...
in the semifinal game.
After juniors, Balsdon joined the
Kelly Cochrane rink, playing third for Cochrane until 2006. Balsdon then re-united with Lindner as her third, winning the 2006
Shorty Jenkins Classic
The AMJ Campbell Shorty Jenkins Classic (formerly known as the M&M Meat Shops Shorty Jenkins Classic, CIBC Trust Shorty Jenkins Classic and just the Shorty Jenkins Classic) is an annual curling tournament, held in September at the Cornwall Curli ...
, their first World Curling Tour event together. The team would play in two
Grand Slam
Grand Slam most often refers to:
* Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves
Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to:
Games and sports
* Grand slam, winning category te ...
events, the 2007
Wayden Transportation Ladies Classic
The Wayden Transportation Ladies Classic, also known as the Abbotsford Ladies was a Grand Slam event on the Women's World Curling Tour
The World Curling Tour (WCT) is a group of curling bonspiels featuring the best male, female, and mixed dou ...
and the
2008 Sobeys Slam. Balsdon and Lindner added
Julie Reddick
Julie Tippin (born August 16, 1983 in Pointe-Claire, Quebec as Julie Lynne Reddick) is a Canadian curler from Owen Sound, Ontario. Tippin is a three-time provincial junior champion, and a Canadian mixed champion.
Career
Tippin attended high scho ...
as their skip in 2011, with Balsdon throwing second stones. The team won the 2012
Challenge Chateau Cartier de Gatineau
The Challenge de Curling de Gatineau (formerly the Challenge Chateau Cartier de Gatineau and the Challenge Casino Lac Leamy) is an annual bonspiel, or curling tournament, on the World Curling Tour. It is held annually in late October in the City ...
. Balsdon remained as a member of the Reddick rink until forming her own team in 2014. Balsdon would make it to her first
Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts
The Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts is the Ontario provincial curling championship for women's curling. The tournament is run by CurlON, the curling association for Southern Ontario. The winning team represents Team Ontario at the national S ...
as a skip in 2015. At the
2015 Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts, she and her rink of
Jessica Corrado
Jessica may refer to:
Given name
* Jessica (given name), includes a list of people and fictional characters with this name
* Jessica Folcker, a Swedish singer known by the mononym Jessica
* Jessica Jung, a Korean-American singer known by the ...
,
Stephanie Corrado and
Laura Hickey
Laura may refer to:
People
* Laura (given name)
* Laura, the British code name for the World War I Belgian spy Marthe Cnockaert
Places Australia
* Laura, Queensland, a town on the Cape York Peninsula
* Laura, South Australia
* Laura Bay, a bay on ...
finished in last place, with a 2-7 record. Balsdon returned to the Ontario Scotties
in 2017 with this team, finishing with a worse record of 1-6.
Balsdon joined the
Julie Tippin
Julie Tippin (born August 16, 1983 in Pointe-Claire, Quebec as Julie Lynne Reddick) is a Canadian curler from Owen Sound, Ontario. Tippin is a three-time provincial junior champion, and a Canadian mixed champion.
Career
Tippin attended high sch ...
rink as her third in 2018. The team played in the
2019 Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts
The 2019 Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the provincial women's curling championship for Southern Ontario, was held January 28 to February 2 at the Woolwich Memorial Centre in Elmira, Ontario. The winning team of skip Rachel Homan, third Em ...
, losing in the final to
Rachel Homan
Rachel Catherine Homan (born April 5, 1989) is a Canadian international curler. Homan is a former Canadian junior champion, a three-time Canadian national champion, and the 2017 world champion, all as a skip. She was also the skip of the Can ...
. Tippin left the team after the season, and Balsdon took over as skip, adding
Lynn Kreviazuk
Lynn Elizabeth Kreviazuk (born May 2, 1991) is a Canadian curler from Ottawa, Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has histor ...
at third to join the front end players of
Rachelle Strybosch and
Tess Bobbie
Tess Guyatt ( Bobbie; born August 12, 1991) is a Canadian curler. She currently plays lead on Team Hollie Duncan.
Career Youth
Guyatt played lead for Fanshawe College at the 2015 CCAA Curling National Championships, on a team skipped by Shann ...
. The team had a successful season on tour, reaching the final of the
KW Fall Classic
The KW Fall Classic is an annual bonspiel, or curling tournament, that takes place at the KW Granite Club in Waterloo, Ontario. The tournament has been held as part of the men's and women's Ontario Curling Tour, and both the men's and women's e ...
, the semifinal of the
Tim Hortons Spitfire Arms Cash Spiel
The Tim Hortons Spitfire Arms Cash Spiel (known originally as the Spitfire Arms Cash Spiel) is an annual bonspiel, or curling tournament, held at the Windsor Curling Club in Windsor, Nova Scotia. It was held as part of the women's World Curlin ...
and the quarterfinals of the
2019 Cameron's Brewing Oakville Fall Classic
The 2019 Cameron's Brewing Oakville Fall Classic was held August 30 to September 2 in Oakville, Ontario. It was the first event of the Ontario Curling Tour for the 2019–20 curling season and the sixth and fifth Men's and Women's events on the ...
,
Stu Sells Oakville Tankard
The Stu Sells Oakville Tankard (also known as the OCT Championships) is an annual bonspiel on the men's and women's Ontario Curling Tour. Except for in 2020, the event has been held at the Oakville Curling Club in Oakville, Ontario. The event wa ...
and the
2019 Tour Challenge
The 2019 KIOTI TRACTOR Tour Challenge was held from November 5 to 10, at the Pictou County Wellness Centre in Westville Road, Nova Scotia. It was the second Grand Slam event of the 2019–20 season.
In the men's tier 1 final, Brad Jacobs of ...
Tier 2
Grand Slam of Curling
The Grand Slam of Curling (branded as the Pinty's Grand Slam of Curling for sponsorship reasons) is a series of curling bonspiels that are a part of the annual World Curling Tour. Grand Slam events offer a purse of at least CAD$100,000, and fe ...
event. At the
2020 Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts
The 2020 Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the provincial women's curling championship for Southern Ontario, was held from January 27 to February 1 at the Ed Lumley Arena in Cornwall, Ontario. The winning Rachel Homan rink represented Ontario ...
, the team finished with a 3–5 record. With Kreviazuk leaving the team following the season, Balsdon, Strybosch and Bobbie added
Hollie Duncan
Hollie Duncan (born January 6, 1987 in Toronto, Ontario as Hollie Nicol) is a Canadian curler. She currently skips her own team on the World Curling Tour.
Career Juniors
As a bantam-aged curler, Duncan skipped her Unionville Curling Club rin ...
to their team as their new skip. The team only played in one event during the
2020–21 season due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. They reached the final of the
Stu Sells Oakville Tankard
The Stu Sells Oakville Tankard (also known as the OCT Championships) is an annual bonspiel on the men's and women's Ontario Curling Tour. Except for in 2020, the event has been held at the Oakville Curling Club in Oakville, Ontario. The event wa ...
, losing to Team
Jennifer Jones
Jennifer Jones (born Phylis Lee Isley; March 2, 1919 – December 17, 2009), also known as Jennifer Jones Simon, was an American actress and mental health advocate. Over the course of her career that spanned over five decades, she was nominated ...
in an extra end.
The newly formed team began the
2021–22 season with a semifinal finish at the
2021 Oakville Labour Day Classic where they lost to event winners Team
Tracy Fleury
Tracy Fleury (born June 13, 1986, as Tracy Horgan) is a Canadian curler from Sudbury, Ontario. She joined the Rachel Homan rink as skip for the 2022–23 season. In 2021, she led her team to a silver medal at the 2021 Canadian Olympic Curl ...
. In their next event, the team won the
Stu Sells Oakville Tankard
The Stu Sells Oakville Tankard (also known as the OCT Championships) is an annual bonspiel on the men's and women's Ontario Curling Tour. Except for in 2020, the event has been held at the Oakville Curling Club in Oakville, Ontario. The event wa ...
, defeating the
Kerry Galusha
Kerry Galusha (born Kerry Koe on November 3, 1977) is a Canadian curler. She currently skips her team out of the Yellowknife Curling Club in Yellowknife.
Career Juniors
Galusha's first national experience was at the 1992 Canadian Junior Curlin ...
rink in the final. The following week, they lost in the final of the
KW Fall Classic
The KW Fall Classic is an annual bonspiel, or curling tournament, that takes place at the KW Granite Club in Waterloo, Ontario. The tournament has been held as part of the men's and women's Ontario Curling Tour, and both the men's and women's e ...
to Team Galusha. They responded with their second event title of the season at the
Stu Sells Toronto Tankard
The Stu Sells Toronto Tankard is an annual bonspiel, or curling tournament, that takes place at the High Park Club in Toronto, Ontario. The men's tournament, started in 2010, is held in a triple-knockout format, while the women's tournament, ori ...
where they defeated Team
Shannon Jay in the final. Because of their successes on tour, Team Duncan had enough points to qualify for the
2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Pre-Trials
The 2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Pre-Trials were held from October 25 to 31 at the Queens Place Emera Centre in Liverpool, Nova Scotia. The event qualified two teams for the 2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
Qualif ...
. At the Pre-Trials, the team finished with a 3–3 record, failing to qualify for the championship round. Team Duncan played in two more tour events during the season, missing the playoffs of the
2021 National
The 2021 BOOST National was held November 2 to 7 at the Chestermere Recreation Centre in Chestermere, Alberta. It was the second Grand Slam and second major of the 2021–22 curling season.
Qualification
The top 16 ranked men's and women's t ...
Grand Slam of Curling
The Grand Slam of Curling (branded as the Pinty's Grand Slam of Curling for sponsorship reasons) is a series of curling bonspiels that are a part of the annual World Curling Tour. Grand Slam events offer a purse of at least CAD$100,000, and fe ...
event and reaching the quarterfinals of the
DeKalb Superspiel
The DeKalb Superspiel is a curling bonspiel that takes place at the Morris Curling Club in Morris, Manitoba. It was an event on the World Curling Tour until 2019 and the Manitoba Curling Tour, and also takes part in the Canadian Team Ranking ...
. Due to the cancellation of the
Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts
The Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts is the Ontario provincial curling championship for women's curling. The tournament is run by CurlON, the curling association for Southern Ontario. The winning team represents Team Ontario at the national S ...
,
CurlON
CurlON (formerly the Ontario Curling Association) is the governing body of curling in Southern Ontario. Northern Ontario is governed by the Northern Ontario Curling Association (NOCA). The CurlON sends a team to represent Team Ontario at all majo ...
appointed Team
Rachel Homan
Rachel Catherine Homan (born April 5, 1989) is a Canadian international curler. Homan is a former Canadian junior champion, a three-time Canadian national champion, and the 2017 world champion, all as a skip. She was also the skip of the Can ...
to represent the province at the
2022 Scotties Tournament of Hearts
The 2022 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Canada's national women's curling championship, was held from January 28 to February 6 at the Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The winning team represented Canada at the 2022 World Women's Curl ...
. However, because Homan herself was chosen to represent Canada at the
2022 Winter Olympics in
mixed doubles
Mixed doubles or mixed pairs is a form of mixed-sex sports that consists of teams of one man and one woman. This variation of competition is prominent in curling and racket sports, such as tennis, table tennis and badminton (where it is known as ...
, Team Duncan were awarded the spot as Team Ontario at the national championship, with Team Homan earning one of the three Wild Card spots. At the Hearts, Team Duncan started with four straight losses before winning their last four games, finishing the event with a 4–4 record.
Personal life
Balsdon works as a research associate with SoleScience Inc., and is a PhD candidate at the
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thames R ...
. She attended
York Mills Collegiate Institute
York Mills Collegiate Institute (York Mills C.I., YMCI or York Mills) is a public high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is part of the Toronto District School Board, offering grades 9–12. It is located in North York along York Mills Road ...
and the
University of Guelph
, mottoeng = "to learn the reasons of realities"
, established = May 8, 1964 ()As constituents: OAC: (1874) Macdonald Institute: (1903) OVC: (1922)
, type = Public university
, chancellor ...
. She is the sister of 2014
Ontario Tankard
The Ontario Tankard is the Southern Ontario provincial championship for men's curling. The winner represents Team Ontario at the Tim Hortons Brier. The tournament is overseen by CurlON (formerly the Ontario Curling Association).
Northern Ontario ...
champion
Greg Balsdon
Gregory Balsdon (born October 9, 1977) is a Canadian curler from North York, Ontario. He currently skips a team on the World Curling Tour.
Curling career
Balsdon was born in Toronto, Ontario. In 1995, Balsdon won the Ontario Schoolboy champio ...
. She is engaged and has two children.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Balsdon, Megan
1982 births
Living people
Canadian women curlers
Curlers from Toronto
Sportspeople from London, Ontario
University of Western Ontario alumni
University of Guelph alumni
Universiade silver medalists for Canada
Universiade medalists in curling
Competitors at the 2009 Winter Universiade