January 19, 2005
LAKEHEAD ALUMNI MATT PAUL: CURLING HIS WAY TO THE TOP
Little did Lakehead Alumni Matt Paul know that playing for the Lakehead Thunderwolves men's curling team at the OUA championships in 1999 would lead to a phone call that would give him a chance to join a team with the opportunity to curl at the Canadian Olympic qualifying bonspiel.
Paul attended Lakehead from 1996 to 2000 and graduated with a degree in Business Administration. The Sault Ste. Marie native was a prime reason that the Lakehead men's club curling team was allowed to take part in the OUA playdowns. In his second last year at Lakehead he continually approached then Lakehead Athletic Director Stu Julius to let the men take part in the OUAs. The Lakehead team was made up of Paul, Andrew Mikkelsen, Dave Buttars, Jamie Waller and Nicolas Aubin. "I begged and hounded Stu Julius to put Lakehead in the OUA playdowns. After getting tired of seeing me at his office every single day, he finally agreed. That year we finished tied for third and were the only team to beat the champions from Ottawa U skipped by Ryan Werenich (son of two-time World champ Ed)."
The next year saw a change at Lakehead Athletics as Tom Warden took over the helm as Athletic Director. Paul said Warden was a very strong influence on him; both in curling and in life. "Tom brought a sense of professionalism to our team and to me specifically. Tom taught me how to deal with the media and balance school with curling. He taught me how to interact at social functions and to always represent our school in a positive light. Tom is undoubtedly a big reason why I am where I am today."
Unfortunately the men's curling teams didn't have the same on ice success as the previous season and Paul left Lakehead and headed to Ottawa to pursue a career with MD Management, a mutual funds company, as well as developing himself as a curler. He began to make a name for myself in the rinks of southern Ontario and had a couple of great seasons in Ottawa; winning a few thousands dollars and advancing his curling career further than he ever thought he would. Paul curls out of the Ottawa Curling Club. However, he shattered his arm last summer when he crashed his bicycle to avoid a jaywalking skunk and was told he wouldn't be able to play this season. However, he worked hard at getting his arm back in shape and played second with the Bryan Cochrane rink from Ottawa (Team Ontario at 2003 Nokia Brier) from September to early December.
On Dec. 17th, 2004 he got his fatefull call out of the blue. Noted London curler Wayne Tuck was on the other end asking Paul if he would like be second on Tuck's team that would be playing in the Canada Cup East that began Dec. 19th, coincidentally being held in Ottawa and hosted by his home club. Tuck's usual second wasn't available for the tourney. Out of curiosity, Paul asked Tuck why he had asked him to join his team. "One of the main reasons was that their lead played against me in the OUA university playdowns when I played with Lakehead and said that he told Tuck that he was sure I could play at that level." The winner of the Canada Cup East got an Olympic Trials spot and the top four teams would be invited to the Canada Cup in March where one more Olympic Trials spot would be up for grabs. The only tough part was that 32 of the best teams in the world would be competing.
During the Canada Cup East, Tuck's foursome started slow then rolled off a string of victories over No. 1 seed Glenn Howard, No. 3 seed Russ Howard (two-time World Champ), No. 5 seed Mike Harris, and No. 7 seed Guy Hemmings; all powerful teams in the Canadian curling world. The Tuck squad made it to the finals but lost in a very close match to Brad Gushue of Newfoundland who beat them with his final shot of the last end for an 8-7 win. However, due to the team's fantastic performance they got a cheque for a cool $8000 and were invited to the Canada Cup in Kamloops, BC running from March 15-20 of this year. There, they'll have one more chance to win the Trials spot. Only ten teams in the country have been invited to this prestigious event; with the winner earning a spot to the Canadian Olympic Trials bonspiel.
Paul currently lives in Ottawa running his own business as a financial writer, providing his expertise to different financial services firms in the Ottawa Valley. Paul said looks back fondly on his days at Lakehead. "I got to curl with a great group of guys and if I hadn't curled for Lakehead, I never would have gotten this incredible opportunity. I also learned so many things at Lakehead that were very important to me as a person."
Lakehead Athletics would like to wish this notable alumnus the best of luck in March in Kamloops!
For more info on the upcoming Canada Cup of Curling; go to http://www.canadacupofcurling.ca/
Paul attended Lakehead from 1996 to 2000 and graduated with a degree in Business Administration. The Sault Ste. Marie native was a prime reason that the Lakehead men's club curling team was allowed to take part in the OUA playdowns. In his second last year at Lakehead he continually approached then Lakehead Athletic Director Stu Julius to let the men take part in the OUAs. The Lakehead team was made up of Paul, Andrew Mikkelsen, Dave Buttars, Jamie Waller and Nicolas Aubin. "I begged and hounded Stu Julius to put Lakehead in the OUA playdowns. After getting tired of seeing me at his office every single day, he finally agreed. That year we finished tied for third and were the only team to beat the champions from Ottawa U skipped by Ryan Werenich (son of two-time World champ Ed)."
The next year saw a change at Lakehead Athletics as Tom Warden took over the helm as Athletic Director. Paul said Warden was a very strong influence on him; both in curling and in life. "Tom brought a sense of professionalism to our team and to me specifically. Tom taught me how to deal with the media and balance school with curling. He taught me how to interact at social functions and to always represent our school in a positive light. Tom is undoubtedly a big reason why I am where I am today."
Unfortunately the men's curling teams didn't have the same on ice success as the previous season and Paul left Lakehead and headed to Ottawa to pursue a career with MD Management, a mutual funds company, as well as developing himself as a curler. He began to make a name for myself in the rinks of southern Ontario and had a couple of great seasons in Ottawa; winning a few thousands dollars and advancing his curling career further than he ever thought he would. Paul curls out of the Ottawa Curling Club. However, he shattered his arm last summer when he crashed his bicycle to avoid a jaywalking skunk and was told he wouldn't be able to play this season. However, he worked hard at getting his arm back in shape and played second with the Bryan Cochrane rink from Ottawa (Team Ontario at 2003 Nokia Brier) from September to early December.
On Dec. 17th, 2004 he got his fatefull call out of the blue. Noted London curler Wayne Tuck was on the other end asking Paul if he would like be second on Tuck's team that would be playing in the Canada Cup East that began Dec. 19th, coincidentally being held in Ottawa and hosted by his home club. Tuck's usual second wasn't available for the tourney. Out of curiosity, Paul asked Tuck why he had asked him to join his team. "One of the main reasons was that their lead played against me in the OUA university playdowns when I played with Lakehead and said that he told Tuck that he was sure I could play at that level." The winner of the Canada Cup East got an Olympic Trials spot and the top four teams would be invited to the Canada Cup in March where one more Olympic Trials spot would be up for grabs. The only tough part was that 32 of the best teams in the world would be competing.
During the Canada Cup East, Tuck's foursome started slow then rolled off a string of victories over No. 1 seed Glenn Howard, No. 3 seed Russ Howard (two-time World Champ), No. 5 seed Mike Harris, and No. 7 seed Guy Hemmings; all powerful teams in the Canadian curling world. The Tuck squad made it to the finals but lost in a very close match to Brad Gushue of Newfoundland who beat them with his final shot of the last end for an 8-7 win. However, due to the team's fantastic performance they got a cheque for a cool $8000 and were invited to the Canada Cup in Kamloops, BC running from March 15-20 of this year. There, they'll have one more chance to win the Trials spot. Only ten teams in the country have been invited to this prestigious event; with the winner earning a spot to the Canadian Olympic Trials bonspiel.
Paul currently lives in Ottawa running his own business as a financial writer, providing his expertise to different financial services firms in the Ottawa Valley. Paul said looks back fondly on his days at Lakehead. "I got to curl with a great group of guys and if I hadn't curled for Lakehead, I never would have gotten this incredible opportunity. I also learned so many things at Lakehead that were very important to me as a person."
Lakehead Athletics would like to wish this notable alumnus the best of luck in March in Kamloops!
For more info on the upcoming Canada Cup of Curling; go to http://www.canadacupofcurling.ca/
