Team World takes 36-point lead into weekend play at Continental Cup

Team World will take a 36-point lead into the weekend at the sixth Continental Cup, presented by Monsanto. After the conclusion of the men’s team games on Friday evening at the EnCana Arena in the Edgeworth Centre, the scoreboard showed Team World 72, North America 36. In five previous Cups, only once has a side come back to win after being down after Friday’s play.   That was Team Europe in 2006 in Chilliwack, but it was only two points behind North America, 62-60, at the time, before rebounding to win big, 229-171. North America managed to win two of the three men’s games in Draw 6, though, to chip away at the lead.  Canada’s Kevin Martin beat Norway’s Thomas Ulsrud, 7-3, while Craig Brown of the USA doubled up China’s Fengchun Wang, 6-3.   Martin and Ulsrud will also face off Sunday afternoon in the men’s Skins finale, as will Wang and Brown in Saturday morning’s 20-point Skins game. Team World took the other game, as Scotland’s David Murdoch hammered Canada’s Kevin Koe, 9-4.   Those two will also have a rematch Saturday night in the 30-point Skins game. Saturday’s action offers Men’s, Women’s and Mixed Skins games, each worth a total of 20 points in the 10:00 am MT draw, followed by the Singles competition, worth a total of 32 points at 4:00 pm, before the day’s final session of Men’s, Women’s and Mixed Skins, worth 30 points each, at 7:30 pm MT. On Sunday at 8:30 am, the women’s 55-point Skins game will pit Team World’s Anette Norberg against North America’s Jennifer Jones.  The men’s 55-point Skins game features Thomas Ulsrud against Kevin Martin at 2:00 pm MT. The Continental Cup, the first event in curling’s Season of Champions, involves Team games (72 points), Mixed Doubles (36 points), Singles (32 points) and Skins (Men’s, Women’s and Mixed, worth a total of 260 points).   The first side to score 201 points is declared the winner.  Each member of the winning team will receive $2,000, while each losing team member gets $1,400. North America holds a 3-2 edge in Cup wins, since the unique four-day competition began in 2002 in Regina.   North America won the inaugural Cup, then took renewals in Medicine Hat in 2004 and 2007.   The World (formerly Team Europe) won in 2003 in Thunder Bay and 2006 in Chilliwack. TSN and TSN2 are providing full live national coverage of the competition. The Continental Cup is a joint venture of the Canadian Curling Association, the United States Curling Association and the World Curling Federation.