Shocking loss costs London, Ont. curler spot in 2026 Paralympics

Canada's Mark Ideson pushes a stone as he and his teammates play against Norway during their wheelchair curling competition at the 2022 Winter Paralympics, Thursday, March 10, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara) (Dita Alangkara/AP)

Mark Ideson’s bid to qualify Canada for the 2026 Paralympics fell short in shocking fashion on Saturday morning.

After going a perfect 6-0 in the round robin at the World Wheelchair Mixed Doubles Curling Championships, Canada represented by Ideson, (London, Ont.) and Ina Forrest (Spallumcheen, B.C.) was upset 7-6 by Japan in the quarterfinals in Stevenston, Scotland.

The loss means Canada’s bid to qualify for the eight-team mixed doubles competition at the 2026 Winter Paralympics in Milano-Cortina, Italy, fell just short.

“We had a great round robin,” Ideson told Curling Canada. “We put ourselves in a good position coming into the quarterfinal. Japan had a great game; we just had a couple of unfortunate outcomes.”

The match was tied 5-5 heading into the seventh end before Japan called its power play to take two. In the eighth end, Ideson had a shot to score three and win the game. He took out a threatening Japanese rock, but his shooter rolled too far and only took one point, losing the game by one.

“I have nothing but admiration for the way Ina and Mark have embraced the daunting challenge of securing Canada’s qualification for the Mixed Doubles event at the Paralympics,” said Kyle Paquette, National Program Director.

“Their performance this week is a testament to their remarkable preparation throughout the season.”

The pressure was on for Forrest and Ideson to secure enough points to qualify Canada for the 2026 Milano Cortina Paralympic Games, and they were in a tough field of 21 countries with the same goal.

Ideson has had a successful career in Wheelchair Curling. He won gold at the 2014 games in Sochi, and bronze in 2018 in PyeongChang and in 2022 in Beijing.

World Curling will officially announce the full Paralympic field in the coming days.