Sterling Middleton shares journey to 2024 Brier

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — From the Fort St. John Curling Club to the 2024 Montana’s Brier, Sterling Middleton has come a long way during his curling career.

The 25-year-old Fort St. John product, who now resides on Vancouver Island, initially didn’t aspire to be a curler.

In fact, according to Middleton, he took it up merely as a hobby.

“We don’t come from a traditional curling background,” said Middleton, who is now a part of the Victoria Curling Club. “My mom kind of took it up after me. My parents weren’t very familiar with it.”

“Curling was something that I tried during the winter to keep active. But I caught on relatively quickly.”

Middleton’s career has now seen him win a pair of junior world titles and a gold medal at the 2016 Junior Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway.

Middleton says consistency when playing a sport such as curling is key.

“The guys I play with, I have lots of experience with,” said Middleton. “Alex [Horvath] joined our team for our third junior national championship, and I’ve been playing with Jason [Ginter] since 2020.”

The team took a bit of a hit when Tyler Tardi decided to join the team of Kevin Koe in 2022. Jacques Gauthier stepped in as skip and led Middleton’s team to a berth in last year’s Brier before Catlin Schneider joined the team last spring. 

Middleton’s team clinched a second consecutive provincial championship and headed to this year’s Brier in Regina.

In what was indeed a “cool moment,” Middleton says he couldn’t imagine a better feeling.

“Only a handful of teams get to have the opportunity to play in a provincial championship,” said Middleton. “I’ve won many big tournaments over the years, but there’s nothing like wearing a Brier patch and representing your province.”

Losing their first two games of this year’s tournament, the B.C. representatives rallied to three consecutive victories before trading wins and losses. They ultimately finished the round-robin at 4-4, falling just shy of the playoffs.

Middleton believes this is only the beginning, and success will continue.

“We played well. Sometimes, in curling, you need a little bit of luck. It’s just maintaining that consistency. You just have to stay patient and know things will go your way. I know teams aren’t taking us lightly anymore.”