Mark Nichols (curler)

Mark Nichols
Curler
Born	(1980-01-01) January 1, 1980 Labrador City, Newfoundland
Team
Curling club	Bally Haly G&CC, St. John's, NL
Skip	Brad Gushue
Third	Mark Nichols
Second	Brett Gallant
Lead	Geoff Walker
Career
Brier appearances	12 (2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)
Top CTRS ranking	1st (2012-13)
Grand Slam victories	7: The National (2010, 2013, 2015); Masters (2014); Canadian Open (2014); Elite 10 (2016), Players' (2016)
Medal record Men's curling Representing  Canada Winter Olympics 2006 Turin World Junior Curling Championships 2001 Ogden Representing  Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian Olympic Curling Trials 2005 Halifax Tim Hortons Brier 2007 Hamilton 2016 Ottawa 2011 London Representing  Manitoba Tim Hortons Brier 2013 Edmonton 2014 Kamloops

Mark Nichols, ONL (born on January 1, 1980 in Labrador City, Newfoundland) is a Canadian curler from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.^[1] He currently throws third rocks for the Brad Gushue rink. Nichols is a former Olympic champion curler, having played third for Team Canada at the 2006 Winter Olympics where the team won a gold medal.

Career

Between 1999 and 2011, Nichols lived in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador where he played third for the Brad Gushue rink. It was with Gushue where he represented Canada at the 2006 Winter Olympics. With Gushue, Nichols has been to three Canadian Junior Curling Championships (1999, 2000, and winning in 2001) and eight Briers (2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011). He has qualified for the 2013 Brier, which will be his 9th. He won the World Junior Curling Championships in 2001 with Gushue as well. He also won Gold in the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, at which he threw a spectacular shot - running back a guard onto another stone which picked another rock that was sitting in a dead zone - in the 6th end of the final against Finland, helping Canada to score 6. Certainly one thing to aid their victory was the fact that Nichols shot a blistering 97 percent in the gold medal final. “When he’s playing that way, we don’t lose very much,” said Gushue.^[2]

He won the Ford Hot Shots shot-making competition at the 2005 Brier, winning a two-year lease on a new Ford vehicle.

Nichols also skipped team Newfoundland and Labrador with Shelley Nichols, Brent Hamilton and Jennifer Guzzwell to a Canadian Mixed Curling Championship in 2005.

Personal life

Nichols is a fitness trainer^[3] with True North - Focus Fitness.^[4] In the summer of 2011, Nichols married his longtime girlfriend and fellow curler Colette Lemon. They have one child.^[5]

Teams

Awards

• WJCC All-Star Third - 2001

References

1. ↑ http://cloudfront9.curling.ca/2015brier-en/files/2015/02/TANKARD-TIMES-THURS-ALL-REVISE.pdf
2. ↑ Canadian Curling Association
3. ↑ Wiecek, Paul (June 4, 2012). "Mark Nichols to join Stoughton curling team". Winnipeg Free Press. 
4. ↑ http://cloudfront7.curling.ca/2013roaroftherings-en/files/2013/12/2013ROTR_MorningRoar_Day5.pdf
5. ↑ http://cloudfront5.curling.ca/2016brier/files/2016/03/BRIER-FRI-ALL.pdf

External links

• Mark Nichols on the World Curling Tour database