The 2021 Tim Hortons Brier will no longer be held in Kelowna due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Curling Canada made the announcement on Tuesday, Dec. 1, that all its 2021 Season of Champions events will be held in a hub in Calgary, Alta., similar to the way the NHL hosted the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
This means the Brier, which was scheduled to take place at Prospera Place March 6–14, 2021, will not be coming to Kelowna.
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Fredericton, N.B., Oakville, Ont., Thunder Bay, Ont., and Ottawa. Ont. will also be missing out on major curling events.
Curling Canada noted that all cities that were meant to host events this year have agreed to host Curling Canada championships in the future.
This marks the second major sports championship Kelowna has lost out on due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In May, the city was to host the Canadian Hockey League’s Memorial Cup tournament, Canadian junior hockey’s largest cross-country event. In late April it was announced the tournament would not be going ahead. The city plans to make a bid to host the tournament in 2023.
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