Welcome to Victoria, the City of Gardens 鈥� or for the last three weeks, it could also be known as the Garden of Edin.
Niklas Edin certainly could consider adopting the sa国际传媒 capital as his second home. The Swedish skip will have fond memories of his stay as exactly two weeks after the 27-year-old claimed the Victoria Curling Classic, Edin added the 2013 Ford World Men鈥檚 Curling Championship to his resum茅, defeating sa国际传媒鈥檚 Brad Jacobs 8-6 at Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre on Sunday evening.
Edin became the youngest skip to ever win a world title and it was Sweden鈥檚 first world men鈥檚 championship crown since 2004 when Peja Lindholm, now the national team coach, defeated Sebastian Stock of Germany.
Edin鈥檚 team of third Sebastian Kraupp, second Fredrik Lindberg and lead Viktor Kjall also becomes the first European rink to claim both the Euro and world championship in the same season.
Now, if he can only find a way to move the Olympics from Sochi, Russia, to Victoria.
鈥淚 would pay off anybody if I could do that. Probably tough to do,鈥� Edin said with a chuckle immediately following his win. 鈥淲e love it here, though, and we鈥檒l definitely be back for more events.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a great couple of weeks and then winning this here, that鈥檚 just a super finish to our time here.鈥�
Sweden recorded deuces in the first, third and eighth ends as Edin controlled the entire game, after a sluggish start to the first end.
Jacobs and his rink of third Ryan Fry, second E.J. Harnden and lead Ryan Harnden chased the game all night after Edin dodged a bullet in the opening end. It was shaping up as a force of one until Fry鈥檚 guard over-curled and Jacobs was heavy on a freeze, opening the door. Edin kicked it down.
鈥淕etting that deuce was a good thing for us and a bad thing for them,鈥� said Edin. 鈥淭hey were lying three with a centre guard. It was a huge momentum swing in the first end.鈥�
Jacobs tried to claw back but a steal in the sixth end threw another major wrench into the game.
鈥淭hey got off to a quick start with a deuce and that鈥檚 not how you want to start the championship final,鈥� said Jacobs. 鈥淵ou want to force them [to one], we weren鈥檛 able to do that. The end was looking so good and then it ended so bad, it was frustrating to swallow. We tried to battle back, but it wasn鈥檛 meant to be.
鈥淒espite the loss, I do feel OK, because it鈥檚 something to be proud of still,鈥� added Jacobs, who curled just 75 per cent in the final. 鈥淚t was a game where nothing seems to go your way. That happens sometimes in curling.鈥�
The week started out so well for sa国际传媒, winning its first five games before dropping four of its final six. The Northern Ontario crew did sweep through the Page 3-4 game and semifinal on Saturday and were rolling.
But so, too, was Edin.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a wonderful week 鈥� the final we played here, it was almost perfect,鈥� said an elated Edin. 鈥淲e executed our game-plan perfectly.鈥�
The Jacobs crew fell short of pulling off three straight wins in the Page Playoff system, as they did to win the Brier in Edmonton last month to qualify for worlds. Sunday鈥檚 loss also ends a run of three straight world men鈥檚 titles for sa国际传媒.
鈥淵ou know what? We鈥檙e going to hold our heads high. We fought as hard as we could. Congratulations to Sweden 鈥� they played awesome,鈥� said Jacobs.
Edin 鈥� who defeated Mike McEwen in the final of the Victoria Curling Classic two weeks previous at Archie Browning Sports Centre 鈥� was also recognized as the Colin Campbell memorial award winner, voted upon by the curlers for playing ability and sportsmanship.
His team finished fourth at the 2010 Olympics and has made a charge the last few years.
鈥淲e played in the last Olympics and our main goal was to get to the next Olympics and maybe grab a medal there,鈥� said Edin. 鈥淎fter the [2010] Olympics, we set up a goal to win the Europeans and worlds. Three years later, we鈥檝e won both and it feels amazing.
鈥淚t actually started a couple of months ago,鈥� Edin added. 鈥淲e played great in Grande Prairie [a World Curling Tour stop], then winning the Victoria Classic was a big thing for us, the biggest paycheque by far for our team.鈥�
As for Jacobs, the Sault Ste. Marie rink will now prepare for the Players鈥� Championship in Toronto.
鈥淚t鈥檚 definitely not the end of the world, we鈥檝e accomplished some great things for a young team, and we still have one big event to play in,鈥� Fry said of the Players鈥� Championship, in which the team hopes to garner more Canadian Team Ranking System points to qualify for Olympic Trials in December in Winnipeg.
