ST. JOHN'S, N.L. -- There were gasps, shouts and cheers in Jeanne Collins's Gander, N.L., living room Wednesday morning as six Team Gushue superfans gathered to watch Canada's men's curling team pull ahead of Denmark to win its first match in the Beijing Olympics.
The women are known as the "Gushue Girls," and they each wore a bright pink shirt that when lined up, spell out the name "Gushue." Collins said there were certainly some white knuckles gripping coffee cups in the sixth end when it looked like Denmark might defeat their beloved team.
But the Canadian team led by 2006 Olympic gold medallist Brad Gushue took control and beat the Danes 10-5 in eight ends.
"It was a great game," Collins said in an interview Wednesday. "It was not a runaway but they don't get rattled; they don't get down. They didn't do really great out of the gate, but boy, they made up for it. It was really good."
The Gushue Girls are Collins, Cindy May, Alice McCarthy, Betty Hansen, Lorna O'Reilly and Nancy Dawe. They've been friends for decades -- some for 40 years. Five are retired teachers and one is a retired hospitality worker. They've been curling together on Thursday nights for about as long as they've been friends.
TSN sportscaster Vic Rauter christened them the "Gushue Girls" when he spotted their shirts in the crowd during the 2016 Tim Hortons Brier in Ottawa. They've since been to Briers in Regina, Brandon, Man., and Kingston, Ont., to watch Team Gushue play.
The Canadian men's curling team consists of skip Gushue with lead Geoff Walker, second Brett Gallant, and third Mark Nichols, all of whom are from Newfoundland and Labrador. 2010 Olympic gold medallist Marc Kennedy, who is from Alberta, is with the team in Beijing as an alternate.
The Wednesday morning gathering in Collins's living room came just days after provincewide pandemic health restrictions loosened enough to allow it. Collins said her husband was up early to plow the snow from the driveway before everyone's arrival at 8:15 a.m., just before the match began.
If they can't watch a game together, they have a group chat on Facebook to dissect each play from their own living rooms, Collins said, though the pink shirts are optional. When they do wear the shirts, they always wear the same letter. Collins wears the "G." May is the second "U."
The women admire Team Gushue's skills -- the power of Nichols, whom they call "Bam Bam," and Gallant's unceasing calm -- but May said it's their sportsmanship that sets them apart.
"They're true ambassadors for our province and our country," May said in an interview Tuesday. "When we see Brad come on the ice, and the others he will go and shake the scorekeeper's hand and acknowledge the volunteers before the game. That's respect."
The Gushue Girls try to follow that example, both on the ice and in the stands cheering on their team, May said.
"We cheer, and we cheer loud -- extremely loud -- and we haven't got kicked out or told about it or anything like that," she said. "But when we stand up, we only stand up for what, three seconds? And then we sit down because we have people behind us."
After Wednesday morning's win, Team Gushue is set to play Norway on Thursday at 2:35 a.m. Newfoundland time. That's a little late to have people over to watch, but the group chat will likely be active, Collins said.
"We'll get together for at least the ones that are at a reasonable time," she said. "Then if they -- or when they -- progress to the medal rounds, we will make every effort to be together." Even if it's at 2:30 in the morning.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 9, 2022.
