Around these parts, Kevin Kalthoff is a big name, but it seems his athletic prowess has spread province-wide. The 2009 Eugene Hritzuk Senior Men鈥檚 Curling Team was inducted into the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame this past Saturday for their international win in 2009.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 say enough how much fun we had together on and off the ice,鈥� said Kalthoff. 鈥淲e treated it as just a game. We wanted to win, but we knew it was a game and we should have the odd laugh.鈥�
According to Kalthoff, the team was put together in 2007 when Hritzuk called Kalthoff and asked him to join the team. Hritzuk was skip, Verne Anderson was second, Kalthoff was third, and Dave Folk was lead. They were all 鈥減retty good curlers,鈥� so Kalthoff figured they had a good chance to win the provincial title.
They started by playing some of the bigger bonspiels for curlers 50 and over and won two of the three they entered. During a couple of those competitions, they ended up beating the defending provincial champion.
They then entered provincials in 2008, which involved going through a progressive play down. The top eight teams played in the finals and Kalthoff鈥檚 team went through undefeated, save for one game.
鈥淲e were almost one brain, we thought so much alike,鈥� said Kalthoff. 鈥淚 know (Hritzuk) appreciated the fact that he didn鈥檛 have to think much about shots or the ice because I already had the broom down. We always seemed to know what the other was thinking.鈥�
They had only thought they鈥檇 make it as far as provincials, so their easy sweep through finals was unexpected and yet bolstering. The next phase of competitions proved to be almost as effortless with eight straight wins. Their first loss was handed to them by Nova Scotia and the second by British Columbia, which landed them in a three-way tie for first. Even then, their losses could have been seen as simple bad luck since they beat both Nova Scotia and British Columbia in a replay.
鈥淩uss Howard was the skip for the New Brunswick team and he鈥檚 won the (Men鈥檚 World Curling Championship) as a skip,鈥� said Kalthoff. 鈥淲e ended up beating him so that was kind of satisfactory. So we won the Canadian title.鈥�
After securing a national victory, the Saskatchewan men had to hunker down and wait until April 2009 for the international curling championship, which was to be held in New Zealand. Because of the difference in the seasons, they had to postpone the championship until it was cool enough, but that caused a problem for the Canadian team. By that time, it was spring, which meant finding ice to practice on was getting harder and harder.
Fortunately, they managed to find a place to practice three days before they left the country. One would think that lack of practice might have crippled them, but instead it seemed to have the opposite effect. Kalthoff and his team went on to hammer out seven consecutive wins and zero losses. They beat Switzerland in the semi-final and dominated over the United States in the finals for a gold medal finish.
鈥淲alking down the ice, I turned to Verne and said, 鈥楾here鈥檚 nobody else to play. We鈥檝e won the world championship. We beat everybody.鈥� I still get goosebumps thinking of that particular moment because it鈥檚 an incredible feeling to say we are the best at something. We are the world champions,鈥� said Kalthoff. 鈥淚鈥檓 no singer by any means, but they were playing the national anthem and I was singing it like I sang it everyday.鈥�
It was because of that moment, that unforgettable win, that Kalthoff believes the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame wants to recognize them.
Kalthoff and the rest of his teammates ended up curling for another two years together following their historic win, but couldn鈥檛 manage to repeat the same results.
Since then, Kalthoff has retired from competitive curling and only does it recreationally now. He incurred a knee injury in 2011 and now has arthritis in his knees.
鈥�(The arthritis) finally told me that maybe I should step away from the game. It just became almost too much of a job to do it,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 kind of torn. I really miss it, but on the other hand, I enjoy what I鈥檓 doing now, curling recreationally. We鈥檝e got a good group of people I鈥檓 around.鈥�
Kalthoff has been curling, competing, and winning since he was a teenager. His high school team even made it all the way to nationals and took third place in Moncton, N.B. It seems almost as if he came out on top in any sport he turned his hand to (he played baseball as well).
When asked how, he said, 鈥淪ome of it is talent. Some of it is getting along with teammates. I always make sure everyone stays upbeat and positive. That helps on any team; it doesn鈥檛 matter what sport you鈥檙e playing. That might be why we did so well.鈥�
Despite his humble demeanor, Kalthoff was quick to shower praise on his wife for her constant support: 鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 have done it without my supportive wife. She鈥檚 been my crutch all these years. When I鈥檝e had bad moments losing, she was there. When I won, she was there. She鈥檚 been my cheerleader, my everything. I owe her everything. I love her to death and so happy she鈥檚 been part of this too.鈥�
Now his oldest son has taken up the same sport, which is where Kalthoff has been focusing his attention. Kalthoff also still manages the Humboldt Curling Club.
For anyone who wants to curl or has a dream, Kalthoff has only one bit of advice:
鈥淜eep trying. Don鈥檛 pack it in if you have a poor year or things don鈥檛 go quite right. Don鈥檛 quit,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f your dream is to do something, go after it no matter what it takes.鈥�
