Curling Champions!

Team USA is proudly wearing bronze medals after today’s closing ceremony recognized them as world champions!

Jimmy Joseph of New Hartford says, “We finally got a medal! We are very satisfied with our performance, and there are many more medals to come. Next year we are going for gold! It feels great!”

Team USA has already qualified for the 2009 World Wheelchair Curling Championships to be held in Vancouver, and this win also guarantees that they will go the Paralympic Games in 2010 to compete against nine other countries!

Tonight the team will celebrate with other curlers from around the world as the Wheelchair Curling Championship in Sursee, Switzerland officially comes to an end. Tomorrow we all head home!

On a personal note, traveling with this team has been an incredible experience! They tell me how much Sitrin’s adaptive sports program has made a difference in their lives, and watching these athletes work together has truly been inspiring. Go Team USA!!!

Brianne Puleo
Director of Community Relations
Sitrin Health Care Center
New Hartford, NY

Bringing Home Bronze!!!

Team USA is ranked #3 in the world for wheelchair curling!


Team USA was pumped up this morning and ready to take on Canada in the Bronze Medal Game! To start out, Canada had the hammer, but blanked the end to keep the advantage. In the second end, Canada came up heavy on a draw for two and put one on the board. USA went into the third end with the hammer. Canada missed an open takeout and then USA drew for two points. In the fourth end, the Canadian skip tried to draw to the button for one, but came up narrow and tapped USA in for two. Then, in the fifth end, the Canadian skip was narrow on a takeout for one, resulting in a steal of four by USA! Down 8-1, Canada was forced to concede after the first two stones were out of scoring position. The game ended with a handshake and a medal for USA!

Skip Augusto Perez signed off on the score to make it official. Meantime, Korea and Norway went head-to-head for the gold medal. After a very exciting and close game that went into an extra end, Norway came out on top.

The final standings included: Gold - Norway,
Silver - Korea, Bronze - USA!

This is the first time the USA wheelchair curling team has ever made it to the medal round, and they are going home with a Bronze! Team Leader Marc DePerno says, “I am so proud of the time and commitment that the team has put into the sport. They are so deserving of this medal.”

USA skip Augusto Perez says, “We have a strong team and great chemistry. Throughout the week we had some highs and lows, but we really worked together to pull through. It was definitely a team effort.”

Coach Steve Brown adds, “They came here with a mission of a medal and that’s what they got. They played like champions!”

Going for Bronze!

USA loses to Norway in the playoff game, but still has a chance for the Bronze Medal!

In the first end, USA stole one from Norway, but in the second end, with a miss of two takeouts, Norway was able to get three on the board. Using the hammer, and a key takeout by skip Augusto Perez, USA got one point in the third. Norway came back with one in the fourth end, but in the fifth, USA managed to stay in it with a final draw to the button for one. In the sixth end, Norway made an incredible inturn freeze to the US stone to secure a point. USA's final stone came up short, and Norway took the win with a score of 5-3. USA will now play the loser of the semi-final game for a chance at the bronze medal.

Coach Steve Brown says, "I really thought our team played a very good game, but the Norway skip made a couple of great shots that kept us from the victory. Our focus now is the bronze medal."

In the other playoff game of the day, Canada conceded to Korea in the sixth end with a score of 7-2. Canada will advance to the semi-finals this afternoon against Norway. Korea is going to the Gold Medal game.

Stay tuned to this blog for more updates, or log onto http://www.sitrin.com/

Ready to Face Norway!

Team USA is on this ice preparing for this morning's match-up with Norway. In order for the USA to have a chance at the silver or gold, they must get into the semi-final. That means, USA must win against Norway this morning to advance to that round. If USA loses to Norway, they still have a chance to play for the bronze.

Here are the top four teams:
1 - Korea
2- Canada
3 - Norway
4 - USA

Today:
10am Play-off game - 1v2 and 3v4

3:30pm Semi-final game - loser of 1v2 plays winner of 3v4

Tomorrow:
10am Bronze Medal Game - loser of semi-final plays loser of the 3v4 game

11am Gold Medal Game - winner of 1v2 plays winner of semi-final

Remember, you can watch animated coverage of this game through the link on Sitrin's website. Stay tuned for updates.

Big Day for Team USA!!

This is the first time the USA curling team has made it to the medal round in a world wheelchair curling competition! The team just had a good breakfast, and we will all head to the arena in just a few minutes.

We begin with a game against Norway at 10am!

Stay tuned to this blog for more updates, or log onto http://www.sitrin.com/ if you want to see animated coverage of the event in real-time.

USA Wins Over Italy!

Team USA heads to the final four Medal Round!

To stay alive in this competition, USA had to defeat Italy in today's tiebreaker.... and they did!

Starting off, Italy scored two using the hammer advantage, and then stole one in the second. In the third end, things looked tough for the USA. When skip Augusto Perez had to throw the final stone, the US was facing two Italian counters. After closely analyzing the situation, the team chose to the only logical shot, which was still an extremely difficult double tapback. Perez threw it perfectly with the right weight and punched our rock right into the button! USA put one point on the board to keep us alive in the game.

In the fourth end, Italy attemped a near impossible double tapback for one point instead of conceding one. This plan backfired on them, and the shot came up narrow and raised one more US stone into the house giving us a gigantic steal of three, and a lead of 4-3. In the fifth end, Italy scored one point on a very nice shot by the Italian skip.

You could feel the tension in the sixth end as both countries battled for the final spot. Our USA squad rose to the occasion and played an absolutely brilliant end! The italian skip was faced with an extremely difficult freeze attempt on his final stone that sailed just an inch wide and a couple inches heavy. USA scored 2 points in the 6th end, bringing the final score to 6-4.

USA is now in the medal round and will face Norway tomorrow. In the other semi-final game, Canada will face top-ranked Korea.

Stay tuned to this blog for more updates, and remember to log onto http://www.sitrin.com/ for further details about this exciting World Wheelchair Curling Championship being held in Switzerland!

USA is 5-4!

With a record of 5-4, Team USA is tied with Italy for the final playoff spot!! Tomorrow USA will face Italy in a tie-breaker to advance to the medal round. Stay tuned to this blog for more updates, and remember to log onto www.sitrin.com for additional statistics and details.

Go Team USA!!

With some inspiring words from Coach Steve Brown and a fresh win under the belt, Team USA hit the ice with confidence this afternoon! Starting out strong with the hammer advantage, Team USA scored three in the first end, stole one in the second, and stole three more in the third! Switzerland managed to score two points, but in the sixth end USA came through with more two points. The final score was 9-2.

Wow, what a day for Team USA!! Both the game against Russia and Switzerland were "must-wins" and Team USA came through!

Coach Steve Brown says, "I am proud of the communication on the ice and the team's ability to execute their shots. We are on our way!"

Win Over Russia!

In a must-win situation, Team USA found themselves down 2-0 early in the game, but in the third end they scored two points to tie. Team USA continued to steal the remaining three ends to get the win. The final score was 6-2.

More great news... Team USA has secured a spot in the 2009 World Wheelchair Curling Championship to be held in Vancouver!

Team Leader Marc DePerno says, “I am proud of the team’s overall effort throughout these events. So far, they are the only team in the round robin to beat top-ranked team Korea.”

This afternoon Team USA faces Switzerland. This game is crucial!

Stay tuned to this blog for results. Remember, you can also go to http://www.sitrin.com/ for animated coverage of the event.

Tough Loss to Canada

Canada took the win over USA in a close game of 5-4. Canada scored two in the first end using the hammer advantage and stole one more in the second end. Team USA demonstrated a strong comeback scoring four points in the next two ends, but Canada managed to take two in the sixth end, bringing them to victory.

Coach Steve Brown says, "The team is working well together and demonstrating some strong play. Tomorrow's games are crucial, and I am confident that a victory is in sight."

USA faces Russia in the morning, followed by Switzerland in the afternoon. Remember, to check out www.sitrin.com for more updates.

USA Wins Again!

USA is 3-3!

Team USA took on Scotland this morning and opened with a quick steal of two points. The team continued the momentum by stealing the next two ends, and built a commanding 6-0 lead. Team USA executed a majority of their shots forcing Scotland to take on a more aggressive strategy. As a result, Scotland was unable to get ahead and USA scored three more points. The final score was 9-1.

Team leader Marc DePerno says, “The team demonstrated tremendous skill and execution, resulting in a much needed victory. We hope to keep the momentum going into this afternoon’s game against top-ranked Canada.”

Team USA is 2-3

Team USA had a big win over Korea with a score of 7-3. Korea was undefeated coming into the match, but Team USA worked well as a team and came out on top. Jacqui Kapinowski said, "We played like the Giants!" Despite being down early in the game, Team USA used the hammer advantage to build a strong lead. The win lifted the spirits of the team, as they shifted their attention to Italy.

Italy used the hammer advantage to take the lead from the start, but Team USA held strong scoring three in the second end. Italy scored two points in the third and the fourth end to take a commanding lead; however, USA drew within one point of the lead going into the final end. USA's last attempt for victory came up inches short. The final score was 7-5.

USA faces Scotland and Canada next. Stay tuned to this blog for results!

Competition Update

USA faced some strong competition today, losing to Norway, defending World Champions, 6-3, and Sweden 8-3. Coach Steve Brown says, "Both Norway and Sweden took advantage of the hammer, scoring two in the opening end, and forced us into an aggressive style of play. The team remains positive and we strongly feel as though we can come back with a pair of victories tomorrow." USA faces Korea in the morning, and Italy in the afternoon.

On a positive note, Jacqui Kapinowski of Team USA is currently ranked first overall in shooting percentage for the lead position.

Stay tuned to this blog for more updates, and remember to check out www.sitrin.com for animated coverage of the event.

USA defeats Japan!

Win #1!

The World Wheelchair Curling Championship is officially underway and Team USA is starting out strong with a 10-2 victory over Japan!

For those of you who may not know, there is no sweeping in wheelchair curling. That means these athletes are at the mercy of the ice, and it really becomes a game of strategy and skill.

USA used the hammer advantage in the first end when Jim Pierce executed a takeout for two points. USA then stole one in the second, and Japan got on the board in the 3rd end when Japan's skip executed a hit and roll to the button for two points. USA came out of the 3rd end break with three more points, followed by a steal of one in the fifth. In the sixth end, USA sat three in the house with two shots remaining. This resulted in the Japanese conceding to Team USA with a handshake.

Jacqui Kapinowski (Point Pleasant, NJ), USA lead, was elated with her first World Championship victory. "It was fantastic! We shot fabulous as a team." Jimmy Joseph (New Hartford, NY), USA second, reported, "We played great as a team and had excellent communication!" Team USA vice skip Jim Pierce (Syracuse, NY) indicated, "The team came together very well. With this momentum, I can see us potentially going to the finals!"

Team USA is resting up now, as competition comes early tomorrow. With smiles on their faces and strategy playing out in their minds, they are looking forward to another big day. USA faces defending World Champions Norway in the morning, followed by Sweden in the afternoon.

Stay tuned to this blog for updates, and remember to check out http://www.sitrin.com/ for animated coverage of the event.

GO TEAM USA!!

Gearing up for Competition!

Last night all of the international teams got together for a welcome reception and team meeting. Inspired by the beautiful scenery and view of the Alps, Team USA was more than ready to hit the ice! We had our first practice session last night, and the team is looking great!

Today we are able to practice at the World Championship arena and tonight we face Japan!

Stay tuned to this blog for more updates! Remember, you can also visit www.sitrin.com for animated coverage of the event.

We are here!

Team USA has arrived in Switzerland, and everyone is excited about the upcoming competition! Today we all plan to get some rest, as we have been traveling for more than 24 hours. The first team meeting will be held tomorrow night! We look forward to catching up with fellow wheelchair curlers from around the world, and meeting new athletes involved in this year's World Wheelchair Curling Championship.

Stay tuned to this blog and www.sitrin.com for more updates!

Off to Switzerland!

TEAM USA

Front row: Augusto Perez (E. Syracuse), Jim Pierce (Syracuse), Jim Joseph (New Hartford), Jacqueline Kapinowski (Point Pleasant, NJ), Bob Prenoveau (Chittenango)
Back row: Team Leader Marc DePerno (Utica), Head Coach Steve Brown (Madison, WI)

Team USA is heading to Switzerland for the World Wheelchair Curling Championships!

I'm so excited to be traveling along with five of the nation’s top wheelchair curlers! The USA 2008 Curling National Championship Team is comprised of Jim Joseph (New Hartford, NY), Jacqueline Kapinowski (Point Pleasant, NJ), Augusto Perez (Syracuse, NY), Jim Pierce (Syracuse, NY), and Bob Prenoveau (Chittenango, NY). These athletes will showcase their talents at the World Wheelchair Curling Championship in Sursee, Switzerland! Approximately 50 athletes with disabilities will compete and represent various countries, including Canada, Italy, Japan, Korea, Norway, Russia, Sweden, Scotland, Switzerland, and the United States.

The World Wheelchair Curling Championship will be held February 1-9. Stay tuned to this blog for updates! You can also visit http://www.sitrin.com/ for shot-by-shot animated coverage of the event.

Go Team USA!!

Brianne Puleo

Director of Community Relations

Sitrin Health Care Center

New Hartford, NY