Autumn Gold Curling Classic facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Curlers Corner Autumn Gold Curling Classic |
|
|---|---|
| Established | 1978 |
| Host city | Calgary, Alberta |
| Arena | Calgary Curling Club |
| Purse | CAD $45,000 |
| 2023 champion |  Gim Eun-ji |
The Curlers Corner Autumn Gold Curling Classic is a big yearly curling event for women. It happens at the Calgary Curling Club in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It's part of the World Curling Tour, which is like a series of professional curling tournaments around the world.
From 2006 to 2014, this event was one of the special "Grand Slam" tournaments. These are the biggest and most important events in curling, with lots of prize money and top teams competing. Even though it's not a Grand Slam anymore, it's still a very important competition.
The first Autumn Gold Classic was held way back in 1978. Back then, the total prize money was $10,500, and the winning team got $4,000. This was a huge amount for a women's curling tournament in Canada at the time! JoAnne's Fashions was the main sponsor for the first few years.
Teams from other countries started joining the event in 1987. This was partly because curling was going to be shown at the 1988 Winter Olympics. It helped make the sport more popular around the world.
The 2001 event was a big moment because it was the first time a Women's World Curling Tour tournament was shown on TV. The semi-finals and finals were broadcast on WTSN.
The prize money for the event has often been over $50,000. In 2019, the total prize money was $44,000, with the winning team taking home $12,000.
A cool moment happened at the 2010 Classic. A team from China, led by Wang Bingyu, won the tournament. This was the first time a non-Canadian team had ever won a Grand Slam of Curling event!
Who Helps Fund the Event?
Over the years, different companies have helped make the Autumn Gold Curling Classic possible by being sponsors. Here are some of them:
- JoAnne's Fashions (1978–1980)
- Labatt (1985–1990)
- Husky Oil (1991–2002)
- Trail Appliances (2003–2009)
- Curlers Corner (2010–present)
