Two-time Olympic gold medallist Kaitlyn Lawes will be taking a hiatus from competitive curling after her Winnipeg-based team announced Thursday that they have disbanded.
Both Lawes and lead Kristin Gordon are stepping back for one season, while third Selena Njegovan and second Jocelyn Peterman are searching for new opportunities.
"We are forever grateful for the memories we made together on and off the ice," the team said in a social media post. "We jam-packed these four years with a lot of training camps, competitions, and fun trips to Iceland, Norway and Japan. We had exponential growth, faced challenges head-on, started our families and made lifelong friendships.
"We are beyond grateful for all of the support we’ve received along the way."
Lawes returned to skipping in 2022 after spending 12 seasons playing third for Jennifer Jones, during which time they won Olympic and world championships and six Grand Slam of Curling titles. She also earned Olympic gold with John Morris in mixed doubles at PyeongChang 2018.
The team switched things up during the 2025 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, as Njegovan took the skip reins, while Lawes continued to throw the last rocks and handled vice skip duties.
Lawes missed the playoffs at the Canadian Olympic curling trials in November after finishing in a three-way tie for the third and final playoff berth with Christina Black and Selena Sturmay. All three teams were tied at 1-1 in head-to-head records, and Black advanced based on last stone draw numbers.
The team fell in the final of the Manitoba playdowns to Beth Peterson on a steal in the 10th end, but earned a berth to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts as one spot was available for the highest-ranked non-qualified team.
Laura Walker filled in at second during the Scotties Tournament of Hearts as Peterman was preparing to compete for Canada in mixed doubles at the Olympic Winter Games in Milano Cortina.
The team won 10 straight games to reach the final undefeated, however, their season ended with a heartbreaker, losing 4-3 on a steal in an extra end to Kerri Einarson.
Einarson earned silver for Canada at the World Women's Curling Championship. Her team also announced Thursday that they have parted ways with third Val Sweeting, alternate Krysten Karwacki and coach Reid Carruthers.
