Robert (Bob) "Bobby" Ursel (born February 12, 1965) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

curler and curling

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

. Born in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, Ursel lives of

Kelowna Kelowna ( ) is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan, Okanagan Valley in the British Columbia Interior, southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the head office of the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The name Kelowna ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

Curling career

After finishing 6–5 at the 1983 Canadian Junior Men's Curling Championship, Ursel skipped his native Manitoba to a Canadian Junior Curling Championship In 1984. The following year, he skipped the Canadian Junior Team to a World Junior Curling Championship title. That team was inducted into the

Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame The Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum is a Canadian museum in Winnipeg, Manitoba, dedicated to honoring the history and achievements of sports in Manitoba. The organization began in 1980, and then opened a museum in The Forks in 1993. Afte ...

in 2016. It would be 15 years out of junior that Ursel would finally make it to

the Brier The Brier ('), known since 2024 as the Montana's Brier for sponsorship reasons, is the annual Canadian men's curling championship, sanctioned by Curling Canada. The Brier has been held since 1927, traditionally during the month of March. The w ...

. He played third for Bert Gretzinger's 1999 British Columbia team. They finished 5-6. In 2002 Ursel moved to play third for Pat Ryan where he made the

2003 Nokia Brier The 2003 Nokia Brier, the Canadian men's curling championship, was held from March 1 to 9 at the Halifax Metro Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The defending champion, Randy Ferbey and his team from Alberta were the winners, winning their third Br ...

. At the 2003 Brier, the team lost in the semi-final to Nova Scotia (skipped by

Mark Dacey Mark Dacey (born June 22, 1966) is a Canadian curler originally from Saskatchewan. He was based at the Mayflower Curling Club in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Dacey is a former Canadian men's curling champion skip, having won the 2004 Nokia Brier. He ...

). After the 2003 Brier, Ursel left the Ryan team to form his own team. Ursel won his third and final BC provincial championship, and only one as skip in 2008, when he defeated former World Champion

Greg McAulay Gregory McAulay (born January 2, 1960) is a Canadian World champion curler from Richmond, British Columbia. Career McAulay has been to two Briers in his career. At the 1998 Labatt Brier, he skipped his British Columbia team to a 7-4 record in ...

8–7 in the final an extra end. He played in his third Brier in 2008 where he lost in the 3-4 game to Ontario's

Glenn Howard Glenn William Howard (born July 17, 1962) is a retired Canadian curler who is one of the most decorated curlers of all time. He has won four world championships, four Briers and 17 Ontario provincial championships, including a record eight s ...

. Ursel sat out most of the 2010-11 season with a knee injury. His team continued to be referred to as "Team Ursel" on the

World Curling Tour The World Curling Tour (WCT) is a group of curling bonspiels featuring the best male, female, and Doubles curling, mixed doubles curlers in the world. History The World Curling Tour was founded by former World Champion Ed Lukowich, with later ass ...

, but he was replaced by Ken Maskiewich at the third position while regular fourth Jim Cotter took over the reins as skip. He is the coach of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese men's team, who won gold at the

2018 Pacific-Asia Curling Championships The 2018 Pacific-Asia Curling Championships were held from November 3 to 10 at the Gangneung Curling Centre in Gangneung, South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the sou ...

Personal life

Ursel's father, Jim, won the 1977 Brier as skip of the Quebec team. Ursel is currently married, and has four children. Prior to becoming the Japanese national team coach, he was employed as a police officer.

Grand Slam record

References

External links

* 1965 births Canadian curling coaches Living people Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers Curlers from Kelowna Curlers from Winnipeg Canada Cup (curling) participants {{Canada-curling-bio-stub