Suzanne Birt (born Suzanne Gaudet on October 2, 1981 in

Summerside, Prince Edward Island Summerside is a Canadian city in Prince County, Prince Edward Island. It is the second largest city in the province and the primary service centre for the western part of the island. History Summerside was officially incorporated as a town on ...

) 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, is a two-time Canadian Junior Champion (

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

) and a former World Junior Curling Champion (2001). She also won a silver medal at the 1995 Canada Games. Birt had attended the

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

, and 2000 Canadian Juniors before finally winning it. At the 2001 World Juniors, she defeated

Matilda Mattsson Matilda or Mathilda may refer to: Animals * Matilda (chicken) (1990–2006), World's Oldest Living Chicken record holder * Matilda (horse) (1824–1846), British Thoroughbred racehorse * Matilda, a dog of the professional wrestling tag-team The ...

's Swedish rink for the gold. The following year she would win the bronze.

2003–2011

In 2003, Birt qualified for the

Scotties Tournament of Hearts The Scotties Tournament of Hearts (''french: Le Tournoi des Cœurs Scotties''; commonly referred to as the Scotties) is the annual Canadian women's curling championship, sanctioned by Curling Canada, formerly called the Canadian Curling Associat ...

for the first time. Her team had an impressive tournament, going 10–1 in the round-robin, only to lose both their playoff games. The next year, she failed expectations, and her team finished 2–9 at the

2004 Scott Tournament of Hearts The 2004 Scott Tournament of Hearts was held at the ENMAX Centrium in Red Deer, Alberta from February 21 to 29 2004. The defending champion, Colleen Jones won the right to represent "Canada" and she would go on to win her fourth straight champions ...

. In 2005, she lost in her provincial playdowns, but returned to the Scotts in 2006. At the

2006 Scott Tournament of Hearts The 2006 Scott Tournament of Hearts, the Canadian women's curling championship, was held at the John Labatt Centre in London, Ontario, February 25, 2006 – March 6, 2006. The tournament consists of 12 teams, one from each of Canada's province ...

, Birt's rink finished 4–7, and at the 2007 tournament, they finished 6–5. They did make the playoffs, but lost to Manitoba, skipped by

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 the 3 vs. 4-page playoff game. Birt played in her fifth Hearts in 2008, finishing with a 3–8 record. Upon her return to the

2011 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2011 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the Canadian women's national curling championship, was held from February 19 to February 27 at the Charlottetown Civic Centre in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. It was the 30th anniversary of Kruger Pr ...

, this time in her hometown of

Charlottetown Charlottetown is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, Charlottetown was an unincorporated town until it was incorporated as a city in ...

, Birt and her team were hoping to build on the momentum left by the defending PEI Champions, headed by Kathy O'Rourke, who made it to the final of the

2010 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2010 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the Canadian women's national curling championship, was held from January 30 to February 7 at the Essar Centre in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. The event was described as having a weaker field than normal, as ...

. Unfortunately, Birt would have a tough time, finishing with a 6–5 record.

2012–2016

At the very first

Curl Atlantic Championship The Curl Atlantic Championship is an annual bonspiel, or curling Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and ...

Birt and her team went undefeated in round-robin play. She advanced to the semifinal, where she defeated New Brunswick's

Andrea Kelly Andrea Danyell Kelly ( née Lee, January 28, 1974), known professionally as Drea, is an American choreographer, dancer, and actress. She is the ex-wife of singer-songwriter R. Kelly. Background and personal life Andrea Danyell Lee was born in ...

. In the final Birt would meet with six time Scotties champion, and two time world champion

Colleen Jones Colleen Patricia Jones (born December 16, 1959) is a Canadian curler and television personality. She is best known as the skip of two women's world championship teams and six Tournament of Hearts Canadian women's championships, including an un ...

, where she would end up winning the championship, earning at trip to Switzerland to compete in the Bernese Ladies Cup. Birt and her team would have a very successful time at the event, qualifying for the playoffs. She would defeat Canada's Jan Betker in the quarterfinal, before losing to Canada's Jennifer Jones in the semifinal. Birt and team would play in the bronze medal game, where they defeated Switzerland's Silvana Tirinzoni, to place third overall in the competition. With the departure of Birt's second

Robyn MacPhee Robyn MacPhee (born August 11, 1983 in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, also known as Robyn Green) is a Canadian curling, curler. Curling career MacPhee played for Prince Edward Island at the 1999 Canada Games, finishing 12th. MacPhee pl ...

, PEI Junior Champion

Sarah Fullerton Sarah Fullerton (born March 8, 1991) is a Canadian curler from Cornwall, Prince Edward Island. Career Junior career Sarah Fullerton has been a rising star on the curling scene in Prince Edward Island. In 2003, she captured the P.E.I 11 and und ...

, was added to the team for the 2012–2013 season. The team qualified for the

2013 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2013 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the Canadian women's national curling championship, was held from February 16 to 24 at the K-Rock Centre in Kingston, Ontario. It was the ninth time Ontario hosted the Tournament of Hearts. Ontario last hos ...

where they finished with a 5–6 record. For the 2013–14 season, Birt brought in a new front end of

Michelle McQuaid Michelle Dianne McQuaid (born July 30, 1991) is a Canadian curler from Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. She currently plays lead on Team Suzanne Birt. She is a three-time PEI junior champion and five-time PEI Scotties champion. Career Mc ...

and Susan McInnes. On the tour, they won the 2013

Royal LePage Women's Fall Classic The North Grenville Curling Club Women's Fall Curling Classic (formerly the Royal LePage OVCA Women's Fall Classic and the Royal LePage Women's Fall Classic) is an annual women's bonspiel, or curling tournament, held in Kemptville, Ontario. It ...

. In the

2014 Prince Edward Island Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2014 Prince Edward Island Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the provincial women's curling championship for Prince Edward Island, was held from January 9 to 12 at the Charlottetown Curling Complex in Charlottetown. The winning team, skipped by Ki ...

, the team had a very poor showing, finishing in last place with a 1–3 record. The team had much more success at the 2015 PEI Scotties, winning the event, and qualifying for the

2015 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2015 Scotties Tournament of Hearts was held from February 14 to 22 at Mosaic Place in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. The winners represented Canada at the 2015 World Women's Curling Championship held from March 14 to 22 at the Tsukisamu Gymnasium in ...

. There, Birt led her team to a 4–7 round-robin record, missing the playoffs. Birt formed a brand-new team for the 2015–16 season, which consisted of

Meaghan Hughes Meaghan Hughes (born January 3, 1986) is a Canadian Curling, curler from Charlottetown, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. She currently plays Second (curling), second on Team Suzanne Birt. She is a four-time PEI junior champion skip and five-t ...

and

Marie Christianson Marie Christianson (born August 12, 1988) is a Canadian curler from Halifax, Nova Scotia. She currently plays third on Team Suzanne Birt. Career Christianson skipped Team Nova Scotia at two Canadian Junior Curling Championships, in 2007 and 2 ...

. On the tour that season, the team won the 2015

Sobeys Classic Sobeys Inc. is the second largest supermarket chain in Canada, with over 1,500 stores operating across Canada under a variety of banners. Headquartered in Stellarton, Nova Scotia, it operates stores in all ten provinces and accumulated sales o ...

. The team won the

2016 Prince Edward Island Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2016 Prince Edward Island Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the provincial women's curling championship of Prince Edward Island, was held from January 15 to 18 at the Montague Curling Club in Montague, Prince Edward Island. The winning Suzanne Bi ...

, and represented the province at the

2016 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2016 Scotties Tournament of Hearts was held from February 20 to 28 at Revolution Place in Grande Prairie, Alberta. The winning team represented Canada at the 2016 World Women's Curling Championship held from March 19 to 27 at the Credit Uni ...

. There, Birt fared no better than the previous season, finishing with a 4–7 record.

2018–present

Birt took two seasons off from curling (which included winning $500,000 on an Atlantic Lottery scratch ticket in 2017), to take a "mental break". She returned to the sport for the 2018–19 season with teammates Christianson, Hughes and McQuaid. In her first season back, she won the 2018 WFG Jim Sullivan Curling Classic on the tour, and won her tenth provincial championship at the 2019 Prince Edward Island Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Birt skipped team PEI at the

2019 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2019 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Canada's national women's curling championship, was held from February 16 to 24 at the Centre 200 in Sydney, Nova Scotia. The winning team represented Canada at the 2019 World Women's Curling Championship he ...

to a 6–5 finish, good enough for sixth place, but out of the playoffs. The following season, they won the 2019

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 ...

on the tour, and they would defend their provincial title, winning the 2020 Prince Edward Island Scotties Tournament of Hearts in early January 2020. At the

2020 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2020 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Canada's national women's curling championship, was held from February 15 to 23 at Mosaic Place in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. The winning team was scheduled to represent Canada at the 2020 World Women's Curli ...

, Birt led PEI to a 5–6 record, finishing in eighth place. Team Birt began the 2020–21 season with two runner-up finishes at the 2020

The Curling Store Cashspiel The Curling Store Cashspiel is an annual bonspiel, or curling tournament, held at the Lakeshore Curling Club in Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia. It has been an on and off event of the Men's and Women's World Curling Tour since 2004 under many dif ...

and the 2020 Dave Jones Stanhope Simpson Insurance Mayflower Cashspiel. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Prince Edward Island The COVID-19 pandemic in Prince Edward Island is part of an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Up until January 14, 20 ...

, many teams had to opt out of the

2021 Prince Edward Island Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2021 PEI Scotties Tournament of Hearts Women's Championship, the women's provincial curling championship for Prince Edward Island, was held from January 29 to 30 at the Maple Leaf Curling Club in O'Leary, Prince Edward Island. The winning Su ...

as they could not commit to the quarantine process in order to compete in the

2021 Scotties Tournament of Hearts The 2021 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Canada's national women's curling championship, was held from February 19 to 28 at the Markin MacPhail Centre at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, Alberta. The winning Kerri Einarson team represented Canada at ...

. This meant that only Birt's rink and her clubmate Darlene London's rink entered the event. In the best-of-five series, Team Birt defeated Team London three games to zero to earn the right to represent Prince Edward Island at the 2021 Scotties in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. At the Tournament of Hearts, Birt led her team to a 4–4 round-robin record, failing to qualify for the championship round. The Birt rink had two appearances in the finals to begin the 2021–22 season. The team lost in the final of the

2021 Oakville Fall Classic The 2021 Oakville Fall Classic was held from August 27 to 29 at the Oakville Curling Club in Oakville, Ontario. It was the fourth men's event and third women's event of the 2021–22 curling season. The total purse for the event was $6,000 on th ...

to Team

Jamie Sinclair Jamie Ann Sinclair (born February 21, 1992) is an American-Canadian curler from Osgoode, Ontario and is a three-time U.S. National Champion. Her United States Curling Association membership is through the Charlotte Curling Association in Charlot ...

and the final of the 2021 Oakville Labour Day Classic to 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 Curling ...

. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Canada The COVID-19 pandemic in Canada is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (). It is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). Most cases over the course of the pandemic have been in Ontario, Que ...

, the qualification process for the

2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials The 2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials (branded as the 2021 Tim Hortons Curling Trials for sponsorship reasons) were held from November 20 to 28 at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The winners of the men's and women's events will r ...

had to be modified to qualify enough teams for the championship. In these modifications, Curling Canada created the 2021 Canadian Curling Trials Direct-Entry Event, an event where five teams would compete to try to earn one of three spots into the

. Team Birt qualified for the Trials Direct-Entry Event due to their CTRS ranking from the 2019–20 season. The team went 1–3 through the round-robin, finishing in last place and not advancing directly to the Trials. Team Birt had one final chance to advance to the Olympic Trials through 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 ...

where they finished the round-robin with a 4–2 record. This qualified them for the double knockout round, where they lost both of their games and were eliminated. The team had two more tour stops during the season, which included winning the Stu Sells 1824 Halifax Classic and reaching the semifinal of the

. The 2022

Prince Edward Island Scotties Tournament of Hearts The Prince Edward Island Scotties Tournament of Hearts is the Prince Edward Island provincial women's curling tournament. The tournament is run by Curl PEI, the provincial curling association. The winning team represents Prince Edward Island at ...

was cancelled due to the pandemic and Team Birt were selected to represent their province at the national women's championship. The team finished 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 Curli ...

with a 4–4 record, fifth place in their pool.

Personal life

Suzanne married Trevor Birt in June 2008, becoming Suzanne Birt. They have two children.2019 Scotties Tournament of Hearts Mead Guide: Team Prince Edward Island

Grand Slam record

Former events

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Birt, Suzanne 1981 births Living people Canadian people of Acadian descent Curlers from Prince Edward Island People from Summerside, Prince Edward Island Sportspeople from Charlottetown Canadian women curlers Lottery winners Canada Cup (curling) participants