Brooklyn Ideson has been around gold medals and Canada jackets her whole life. Her father Mark Ideson just won his second Paralympic gold last month, adding to a collection that already included two Paralympic bronze medals as well.
On Friday afternoon, however, Brooklyn was able to add to the family collection by earning a gold medal and Maple Leaf jacket of her own.
Along with her teammate Owen Henry, Ideson claimed the top prize at the U-21 Mixed Doubles World Qualifier in Sudbury, Ont. The Ilderton, Ont.-based duo took down Edmonton’s Bethany Evans and Sahil Dalrymple, 12-4, in the final.
“Obviously I’ve had some pretty great athletes to look up to,” said Ideson. “To add another gold medal to the Ideson collection is pretty awesome.”
Aside from the gold medal, the prize also includes the right to represent Canada at the upcoming World Junior Mixed Doubles Championship which will take place next month in Edmonton.
“This week was pretty magical, this whole season has been magical” said Henry, referring not only to this win, but his Ontario Men’s title and his trip to the playoffs at the Montana’s Brier in St. John’s. “We had some ups and some downs this week, but to bring it all together at the right time – it’s just so special.”
Ideson and Henry opened with four straight wins, before dropping their fifth game. After winning their sixth, they had clinched first place and the last round-robin game didn’t matter. They lost 8-0.
“We were a bit flat,” said Henry. “It was a bit of load management, honestly. I was resting my shoulder, knowing that today was going to be a big one. I had to come out swinging, sweeping all those rocks.”
After sweeping a few shots in the first end of the final, Henry noticed something was different.
“I hadn’t swept like that in months,” he said. “I told Brooklyn ‘I have a different gear today.’ The adrenaline is crazy. My shoulder has hurt all week, and I don’t feel any pain right now.”
Out of the gate, Ideson and Henry took three and stole four, to take a 7-0 lead after two ends. They didn’t look back.
“We were able to catch on to the conditions pretty quickly,” said Ideson. “We made the right shots at the right time. All the teams we played this week were great, and it was a lot of fun getting to know them.”
Meanwhile, Mark Ideson also took home a gold medal – this time as a coach.
For the first time ever, he sat behind the bench and helped guide his squad to victory. One competition as coach… one national championship.
“I feel like I should retire after that,” he said. “Honestly though, They made it easy. Owen and Brooklyn played really well. Obviously, I added where I could, but really – they were in control out there. They had a great week.”
Both players gave their first-time coach rave reviews.
“Mark is the person with the best perspective on curling, on life, on everything,” said Henry. “He’s such a calming influence on us. He says he’s nervous but he never shows it on his face.”
“If you’ve ever watched him curl, you know he’s pretty calm and collected,” said Brooklyn. “That’s the same kind of energy he brings as a coach too. He keeps us grounded out there, and gave us some great advice in big moments. It was pretty special to have him out there.”
Coach Mark summed it up.
“I’m so proud of her. They work so hard. We spend a lot of time together on the ice,” he said. “She got to share in our gold medal in Italy with us, and I get to share in this one with her.”
