Marc Kennedy

Canadian curler and Olympic gold medallist
Marc Kennedy
Curler
Born (1982-02-05) February 5, 1982 (age 42)
St. Albert, Alberta
Team
Curling clubSaville Community SC[1]
Edmonton, AB
SkipBrad Jacobs
ThirdMarc Kennedy
SecondBrett Gallant
LeadBen Hebert
Curling career
Member Association Alberta (1998–2018, 2022–present)
 Northern Ontario (2019–2022)
Brier appearances13 (2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
World Championship
appearances		4 (2008, 2009, 2016, 2021)
Olympic
appearances		3 (2010, 2018, 2022)
Top CTRS ranking1st (2006–07, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2015–16, 2019–20)
Grand Slam victories17 (2004 Players', 2007 Canadian Open (Jan.), 2007 National (Mar.), 2007 Players', 2007 Canadian Open (Dec.), 2010 Canadian Open, 2010 Players', 2010 National (Dec.), 2011 Players', 2014 Players', 2015 Tour Challenge, 2018 Players', 2019 Tour Challenge, 2019 National, 2020 Canadian Open, 2023 Canadian Open, 2023 Champions Cup)

Marc Kennedy (born February 5, 1982) is a Canadian curler, and Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic gold medallist from St. Albert, Alberta. He currently plays third on Team Brad Jacobs.

In 2019, Kennedy was named the greatest Canadian male second in history in a TSN poll of broadcasters, reporters and top curlers.[2]

Career

Kennedy was born in St. Albert, Alberta, the son of Don and Connie. He started curling at age six.[3] He is a Canadian Winter Games champion[4] and three-time provincial junior champion. He won his first provincial men's championship with Kevin Martin in 2007. As a junior, he played second for Carter Rycroft at the 1998 Canadian Junior Curling Championships and played third for Jeff Erickson at the 1999 and 2001 Canadian Juniors.

In 2003 Kennedy was an alternate for the 2003 Winter Universiade gold medal-winning team from Brandon University skipped by Mike McEwen.

After 2-time World Junior Champion John Morris moved to Alberta in 2003, Kennedy joined his team at second position. In 2004, they lost the Canada Cup final to Randy Ferbey.

In 2006, both Morris and Kennedy joined 2-time Brier champion Kevin Martin on his new team.

In 2008, Kennedy won the Brier and the World Championships as a member of the team. They repeated their Brier win in 2009, going undefeated for a second straight year and setting a record for consecutive Brier games won (26) previously held by the Ferbey foursome.

In 2010, Kennedy won an Olympic Gold Medal in Vancouver with Kevin Martin, John Morris and Ben Hebert as Team Canada defeated Thomas Ulsrud of Norway 6-3 in the Gold Medal Game.

After a win at the Alberta provincials, Kennedy headed with Team Martin to the 2011 Tim Hortons Brier. They went through the round robin with a 9-2 win–loss record and lost the page 3 vs. 4 playoff game to Ontario and the bronze medal game to Newfoundland/Labrador. Kennedy left the Brier before the bronze medal game because he and his wife were expecting a new child.

In 2013, Kennedy and Team Martin won the Alberta provincials with a close win over Kevin Koe to earn a berth in the 2013 Tim Hortons Brier in their hometown Edmonton. On the first day, Kennedy won the Ford Hot Shots skills and shot-making competition that preceded the start of round-robin play.[5] The team played in the 2013 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials, finishing third.

Following Kevin Martin's retirement from curling in 2014, Kennedy joined Team Kevin Koe at third. They played in their first Brier together in 2015, finishing with a 6-5 record, missing the playoffs. In December 2015, Kennedy, along with his teammates, claimed the first berth in the 2017 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials with their Canada Cup victory in Grande Prairie, AB. The team continued their winning ways that season by winning the 2016 Tim Hortons Brier and a gold medal at the 2016 World Men's Curling Championship. Representing Team Canada as defending champions, the team lost in the final of the 2017 Tim Hortons Brier.

The team would go on to win the 2017 Olympic Trials and represented Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics, finishing fourth.

Following the 2017-18 season, Kennedy announced he would take a break from competitive curling to heal injuries and focus on family.[6] He subsequently took a position as national team program performance consultant with Curling Canada.[7] He was invited to play third for team Brad Jacobs at the 2018 Canada Cup, to fill in for Ryan Fry, who took a couple of events off, following unsportsmanlike behaviour from an event he played in.[8] Kennedy's addition to the team worked out, and they would win the event.[9] Kennedy announced in March 2019 that he would join Team Jacobs to replace Ryan Fry for the next three curling seasons. [10] In their first event, the 2019 AMJ Campbell Shorty Jenkins Classic, the team went undefeated up until the final where they would lose to Team Epping. Team Jacobs won three straight Grand Slam events at the Tour Challenge, National and the Canadian Open. They would unsurprisingly win the 2020 Northern Ontario Men's Provincial Curling Championship, going in as the number one seed. At the 2020 Tim Hortons Brier, they battled through two tiebreakers before losing to Newfoundland and Labrador's Brad Gushue in the 3 vs. 4 game, all within the same day. It would be the team's last event of the season as both the Players' Championship and the Champions Cup Grand Slam events were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[11]

Team Jacobs played in two tour events during the 2020–21 season, winning the Stu Sells Oakville Tankard and losing in the qualification game of the Ashley HomeStore Curling Classic. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, the 2021 provincial championship was cancelled. As the reigning provincial champions, Team Jacobs was chosen to represent Northern Ontario at the 2021 Tim Hortons Brier.[12] At the Brier, they finished with a 7–5 record.[13] Also during the 2020–21 season, Kennedy served as the alternate for the Brendan Bottcher rink at the 2021 World Men's Curling Championship. He was added to the team as a backup plan in case Bottcher's third Darren Moulding's back injury that he sustained during the 2021 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Championship re-emerged as an issue.[14] Kennedy, however, did not have to play in any games for the team as Moulding's back held up for the tournament.

Kennedy was named to a third Olympic team as the alternate for the Brad Gushue rink for the Beijing 2022 Olympics.[15]

2022 Winter Olympics

Kennedy's team, skipped by Brad Gushue, qualified as the Canadian representatives by winning the 2021 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials, defeating Brad Jacobs 4–3 in the final. Kennedy was the alternate for the team.[16][17] The team would go onto win the bronze medal.[18][19][20]

Personal life

Kennedy is married to his wife, Nicole Kennedy (née MacDonald), and they have two daughters. His brother Glen is also a curler.[3]

Kennedy has a marketing degree from the University of Alberta. He was a franchise owner for M&M Meat Shops until he sold his business in 2012 to focus more on curling. He also worked as a real estate agent for Sarasota Realty.[21] Kennedy currently works as a coaching consultant.[22]

Kennedy is a Hec Gervais Scholarship winner, as well as a Can Fund recipient[23] He is also currently an MBA Student at the University of Alberta.[24]

Marc and Nicole began a youth bonspiel in 2016 called the Marc Kennedy Junior Classic, held in St. Albert and Edmonton. The Bonspiel saw a spin-off program in 2018 (Over The Pond) introducing international teams selected through the Nordic Jr Curling Tour. Two Canadian teams are also selected and visit the year-end event in Sweden. Unofficially, the MKJC is the largest youth/junior bonspiel in the World hosting almost 70 teams at its peak. [citation needed]

In his youth, Kennedy also played Canadian football and played for the Edmonton Huskies.[3]

Teams

From left: Kevin Martin, John Morris, Kennedy, Ben Hebert
Season Skip Third Second Lead Events
1997–98 Carter Rycroft Glen Kennedy Marc Kennedy Jason Lesmeister 1998 CJCC
1998–99 Jeff Erickson Marc Kennedy Kevin Skarban Kevin McNee 1999 CJCC
1999–00 Jeff Erickson Marc Kennedy Kevin Skarban Kevin McNee
2000–01 Jeff Erickson Marc Kennedy Kevin Skarban Aaron Sarafinchan 2001 CJCC
2001–02[25] Marc Kennedy Chris Schille Kevin Skarban Aaron Sarafinchan
2002–03[26] Chris Schille Marc Kennedy Steven Meadows Stephen Jensen
2003–04 John Morris Kevin Koe Marc Kennedy Paul Moffatt 2004 Alta., CC
2004–05 John Morris Kevin Koe Marc Kennedy Paul Moffatt 2005 Alta., CC
2005–06 John Morris Kevin Koe Marc Kennedy Paul Moffatt 2005 COCT, 2006 Alta., CC
2006–07 Kevin Martin John Morris Marc Kennedy Ben Hebert 2007 Alta., CC, Brier
2007–08 Kevin Martin John Morris Marc Kennedy Ben Hebert 2008 Alta., CC, Brier, WCC
2008–09 Kevin Martin John Morris Marc Kennedy Ben Hebert 2009 Alta., CC, Brier, WCC
2009–10 Kevin Martin John Morris Marc Kennedy Ben Hebert 2009 COCT, 2010 OG
2010–11 Kevin Martin John Morris Marc Kennedy Ben Hebert 2010 CC, 2011 Alta., Brier
2011–12 Kevin Martin John Morris Marc Kennedy Ben Hebert 2011 CC, 2012 Alta.
2012–13 Kevin Martin John Morris Marc Kennedy Ben Hebert 2012 CC, 2013 Alta., Brier
2013–14 Kevin Martin David Nedohin Marc Kennedy Ben Hebert 2013 COCT, 2014 Alta.
2014–15 Kevin Koe Marc Kennedy Brent Laing Ben Hebert 2014 CC, 2015 Alta., Brier
2015–16 Kevin Koe Marc Kennedy Brent Laing Ben Hebert 2015 CC, 2016 Alta., Brier, WCC
2016–17 Kevin Koe Marc Kennedy Brent Laing Ben Hebert 2016 CC, 2017 Brier
2017–18 Kevin Koe Marc Kennedy Brent Laing Ben Hebert 2017 COCT, 2018 OG
2018 Brad Jacobs Marc Kennedy E. J. Harnden Ryan Harnden 2018 CC (lone event)
2019–20 Brad Jacobs Marc Kennedy E. J. Harnden Ryan Harnden 2019 CC, 2020 Northern Ont., 2020 Brier
2020–21[27] Brad Jacobs Marc Kennedy E. J. Harnden Ryan Harnden 2021 Brier
2021–22 Brad Jacobs Marc Kennedy E. J. Harnden Ryan Harnden 2021 COCT, 2022 Brier
Brad Gushue Mark Nichols Brett Gallant Geoff Walker
alt.: Marc Kennedy		 2022 OG
2022–23 Brendan Bottcher Marc Kennedy Brett Gallant Ben Hebert 2023 Alta., Brier
2023–24 Brendan Bottcher Marc Kennedy Brett Gallant Ben Hebert 2024 Brier
2024–25 Brad Jacobs Marc Kennedy Brett Gallant Ben Hebert

Awards & recognitions

  • Canadian Curling Championship First Team All Star (Second) 2007
  • Canadian Curling Championship First Team All Star (Second) 2008
  • World Curling Tour MVP 2008
  • Canadian Curling Championship First Team All Star (Second) 2009
  • University Of Alberta Award of Excellence 2010
  • Canadian Curling Championship First Team All Star (Second) 2011
  • Canadian Curling Championship Second Team All Star (Second) 2013
  • Canadian Curling Championship Second Team All Star (Third) 2015
  • TSN Top Male Second Of All Time 2019
  • TSN #8 Top Male Player Of All Time 2019
  • Canadian Curling Championship

Second Team All Star (Third) 2020

  • Canadian Curling Championship

First Team All Star (Third) 2022

  • Canadian Curling Championship

First Team All Star (Third) 2024

See also

References

  1. ^ "2021 Home Hardware Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Media Guide" (PDF). Curling Canada. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  2. ^ Weeks, Bob (March 5, 2019). "Canada's Greatest Curlers: Kennedy dominates competition for best second". TSN. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "Marc KENNEDY". 2022 Winter Olympics. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  4. ^ Canada Games Athletes search Archived 2010-02-10 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ O'Leary, Chris (March 2, 2013). "Marc Kennedy wins Ford Hot Shots skills competition". The Edmonton Journal. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  6. ^ Brazeau, Jonathan (March 3, 2018). "Olympic curler Marc Kennedy taking a break after season". Sportsnet. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  7. ^ Heroux, Devin (8 November 2018). "Canada first? Marc Kennedy thinks we're exporting too much curling knowledge". CBC Sports. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  8. ^ Strong, Gregory (December 3, 2018). "Marc Kennedy filling in for Ryan Fry as Team Jacobs heads to Canada Cup". The Globe and Mail. The Canadian Press. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  9. ^ Horne, Ryan (December 9, 2018). "Jacobs captures first career Canada Cup with help from Kennedy". TSN. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  10. ^ Heroux, Devin (March 21, 2019). "Olympic champ Marc Kennedy ending retirement to join Team Jacobs". CBC Sports. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  11. ^ "GSOC cancels remaining events of 2019–20 season". Grand Slam of Curling. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  12. ^ The Canadian Press (December 21, 2020). "Ontario, Manitoba cancel provincial playdowns". TSN. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  13. ^ "2021 Tim Hortons Brier: Scores, schedule, standings". Sportsnet. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  14. ^ "Marc Kennedy to join Team Canada lineup for World Championship". Curling Canada. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  15. ^ "Marc Kennedy joins Brad Gushue's curling team as Olympic alternate". SportsNet. December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  16. ^ "Gushue defeats Jacobs to earn Olympic spot". TSN. 29 November 2021. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  17. ^ Nichols, Paula (29 November 2021). "Team Jones and Team Gushue officially join Team Canada for Beijing 2022". www.olympic.ca/. Canadian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  18. ^ Korobanik, John (18 February 2022). "Team Gushue wins men's curling bronze medal at Beijing 2022". www.olympic.ca/. Canadian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  19. ^ "Gushue, Canada beat USA to claim men's curling bronze". TSN. 18 February 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  20. ^ Boynton, Sean (18 February 2022). "Canada takes bronze in men's curling at Beijing Olympics with 8-5 win over U.S." Global News. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  21. ^ 2017 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials: Media Guide
  22. ^ "2021 Tim Hortons Brier Media Guide" (PDF). Curling Canada. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  23. ^ "Canadian Athletes Now Fund: Helping Amateur Athletes Achieve their Dreams - Marc Kennedy". Archived from the original on 2010-12-27. Retrieved 2010-04-15.
  24. ^ "Tankard Times" (PDF). Curling Canada. March 10, 2016. p. 10. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  25. ^ "Northern Playdown Winners". Northern Alberta Curling Association. Archived from the original on April 16, 2002.
  26. ^ "Northern Playdown Winners". Northern Alberta Curling Association. Archived from the original on February 16, 2003. Retrieved March 6, 2019.
  27. ^ "2020–21 Men's Curling Teams". CurlingZone. Retrieved November 4, 2020.

External links

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