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Kelowna blind curling team qualifies for 2025 Western Blind Curling Championships

Blind curlers to westerns

A team from Kelowna has earned the right to compete at the 2025 Western Blind Curling Championships.

The Kelowna Curling Club hosted the provincials last weekend, and while the local team finished third, that was good enough to earn a spot at the westerns in Prince George, March 19-22.

The team consists of skip Kelly Thom, who has about 9% vision remaining in his peripheral vision; third Jacquie Thom, with 9% central vision; second Brian Leshelt, who has 10% peripheral vision remaining; and lead Derek Wilson, who has no vision.

They are coached by local curler Faye Wales. She uses voice commands and a light to help guide shots.

Kelowna opened the tournament with a win Saturday morning over Campbell River. They lost to Prince George on Saturday afternoon and got by Vancouver on Sunday morning.

The point system used for the bonspiel was two points for a win of each end and 10 points for a game win, with five points for each team in the event of a tie.

The Vancouver team had the highest point total and will represent B.C. at the 2026 nationals in Ottawa. Prince George finished second, followed by Kelowna, who will make their way to the northern B.C. city to compete against teams from Alberta and Saskatchewan in March at the 2025 Western Blind Curling Championships.

The local team is hoping to find sponsors or collect enough donations to be able to compete again next season.



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