Friday, December 7, 2001
Keeping Oly dream alive
Burtnyk rattles off sixth straight win
By JIM BENDER -- Winnipeg Sun
REGINA -- No one would have blamed Kerry Burtnyk if he had suggested earlier that this week was just too taxing when he stumbled to an 0-3 start at the 2001 Canadian Curling Trials.
After all, the Manitoba skip did spend the summer first taking radiation treatment, then undergoing eight hours of surgery for a second time to remove a cancerous lump from his scalp.
But the Manitoba skip refused to use any excuses.
And somewhere, somehow this week, Burtnyk steeled the resolve to re-ignite his Olympic dream. Burtnyk then rattled off six straight must wins, wrapping up the round robin with a 9-6 victory over B.C.'s Bert Gretzinger at the Agridome last night.
That put Burtnyk into a second-place tie with Gretzinger at 6-3. The pair will face off in the semifinal tonight at 6:30.
"Our team started to play better on Monday and we've been able to carry it through," said Burtnyk, supported by third Jeff Ryan, second Rob Meakin and lead Keith Fenton. "And we're playing with confidence. But each game is such a big game and we knew this was huge because we were in control of our own destiny.
"And now, we're in the semifinal, which is where we wanted to be at the start of the week. That's Step One."
OVERCOME ADVERSITY
But suffice to say, he knows how to overcome adversity.
"Certainly, personally, I've had some adversity and one thing I got from that is that curling is just a game," said Burtnyk, 43. "Whether we win, lose or draw this weekend, life's still going to go on. We're having fun here but we're still trying to win."
Meanwhile, Burtnyk added that it may be a disadvantage to play Gretzinger back-to-back.
"Hopefully, we made him overconfident," Gretzinger suggested. "I think of it as a fresh start (today) and we'll put this one behind us. And I'm just happy that we're still playing (today)."
Alberta's Kevin Martin bounced Ontario's John Morris 9-7 to finish alone in first with a 7-2 record. Martin will play the semifinal winner Sunday at 12:30 p.m.
'WE SURVIVED'
"It's big," said Martin, who lost the 1997 final to Ontario's Mike Harris. "Our backs were against the wall early in the week and we survived. And this is all we can ask for.
"But, we were this close before."
Ironically, Burtnyk's win over Gretzinger essentially bounced provincial rival Jeff Stoughton. It was Stoughton who eliminated Burtnyk from the '97 trials.
"(Kerry) had his destiny in his own hands in '97 and lost," Stoughton said. "This year, he got it again and he pulled it out. And good for them. They came back from three straight losses to win six in a row so, that's great."
Strangely, Stoughton's foursome led 10 of the top teams in the world in shooting percentage most of the week, yet finished out of the playoffs.
"Percentages mean absolutely nothing," he said. "The only thing you can compare is how the other team shoots against you."
And that happened in two games in particular.
"We came out a little flat against Burtnyk and again (yesterday) morning against Morris," said Stoughton, who finished with 5-4 record after defeating Ontario's Wayne Middaugh 8-3. "We win one of those and we're in something."
But it may take him awhile to get over this disappointment.
"No, it won't haunt me," he said. "It will certainly bother you for a few days. But it's not the end of the world.
"But it would be certainly nice to keep on playing."
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