Robert "Bob" LaBonte (born c. 1950) is an American curler, a and a 1972 United States men's curling champion. He currently lives in

Minot, North Dakota Minot ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Ward County, North Dakota, United States, in the state's north-central region. It is most widely known for the Air Force base approximately north of the city. With a population of 48,377 at the 20 ...

and is employed as a stock broker. He is best known for the "

Curse of LaBonte The "Curse of LaBonte" is quite possibly one of the most famous curses in curling history. It was caused by an incident at the finals of the 1972 World Curling Championships, world men's curling championship, the 1972 Air Canada Silver Broom in Ga ...

" - one of the most famous curses in curling history. It was caused by an incident at the finals against Canada at the 1972 world men's curling championship, the 1972 Air Canada Silver Broom in

Garmisch-Partenkirchen Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; Bavarian: ''Garmasch-Partakurch''), nicknamed Ga-Pa, is an Alpine ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ''GAP''), in the O ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. After the last shot of the 10th end came to rest, it appeared as though they had won, and LaBonte leaped in the air to celebrate, but upon his descent he burned (touched) a Canadian stone. The stone was replaced and was found to be closer, giving Canada the point and forcing the game to an extra end, where Canada scored again, winning the match. Canada did not win another World Championship until 1980, and were said to have been "cursed".

Personal life

LaBonte attended the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (also known as UND or North Dakota) is a public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It was established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of ...

Teams

References

External links

* Living people 1950s births American curling champions American male curlers Sportspeople from Minot, North Dakota University of North Dakota alumni {{US-curling-bio-stub