LINEUP FOR 2024 WORLD WHEELCHAIR CURLING CHAMPIONSHIP ANNOUNCED
2024 World Wheelchair Team
[EAGAN, MN, December 21st, 2023] — The competitors who will represent the United States at the 2024 World Wheelchair Curling Championship have been announced.
Team USA at the World Wheelchair Curling Championship in Gangnueng, Korea, will include Matt Thums, Steve Emt, Shawn Sadowski, Oyuna Uranchimeg, and Laura Dywer. They will be supported by Wheelchair Curling Director and Head Coach Pete Annis, Assistant Coach Jessica Schultz, and Sports Psychologist Matt Mikesell. The championship runs March 2-9, 2024.
At the outset of the season, eight athletes were named to the National Team. Only five players can represent the United States in Korea. Throughout the competitive schedule, all players are evaluated by the coaching staff to determine the lineup at the World Championship.
“After a long, thorough selection process during the fall competitions, these athletes have earned the opportunity to represent the USA at the 2024 World Championship, based on their training prorgress and their high caliber play in events,” Annis said. “Our entire National team enjoyed a successful competitive schedule, and I want to recognize the contributions and strong performances of Dan Rose, Dave Samsa, and Pam Wilson.”
Thums, Emt, Sadowski, Uranchimeg, and Dywer competed together at the 2023 World Championship, recording a fifth-place finish.
“I think we learned a great deal at last year’s World Championship, and this group has put in the work required to get on the podium in 2024,” Annis added.
The World Wheelchair Mixed Doubles Championship will immediately follow the World Wheelchair Curling Championship, starting on March 10th and concluding on March 16th. Wheelchair Mixed Doubles is also part of the Paralympic program at the 2026 Games in Milan-Cortina.
In the Mixed Doubles discipline, Team USA will be represented by the winning team at the 2024 USA Wheelchair Mixed Doubles National Championships in Fort Wayne, IN, running January 4-7, 2024. The team of Dave Samsa and Pam Wilson captured the national title last season, and went on to earn silver medals at the 2023 World Championship, held in Richmond, BC, Canada.
All eight members of the Wheelchair Curling National Team will participate in the 2024 Can-Am Cup, a new competition that pits Team USA against Team Canada in a one-day Ryder Cup-style event. The Can-Am Cup will be on January 27th at The Rink at American Dream in East Rutherford, NJ, the same venue that will host the USA Curling 2024 Men's & Women's National Championships from January 29th to February 4th.
About USA Curling
Founded in 1958 and headquartered in Eagan, Minnesota, USA Curling is the National Governing body for the Olympic sport of curling and the Paralympic sport of wheelchair curling in the United States. The mission of USA Curling is to grow, strengthen, and advocate for the Olympic and Paralympic sport of curling in the United States by prioritizing accessibility and programmatic development from grassroots to podium. USA Curling is sponsored by Columbia Sportswear, Twin Cities Orthopedics, Training HAUS, Toyota, ISS (Ice, Sports & Solar), Rock Solid Productions, Jet Ice, and Laurie Artiss. USA Curling is a proud member of the World Curling Federation and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee. To learn more, visit usacurling.org.
