Harris left off Team Einarson’s 2025 Canadian women’s curling championship roster

Team Canada skip Kerri Einarson releases a rock as they play Northern Ontario in championship action at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts at Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay, Ont., Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan

Four-time Canadian champion Kerri Einarson is sticking with her current lineup for the upcoming Scotties Tournament of Hearts despite the reinstatement of lead Briane Harris.

Her team announced its lineup for the Canadian women’s curling championship Friday, with Einarson at skip joined by third Val Sweeting, second Karlee Burgess and lead Krysten Karwacki.

The team says a fifth player will be announced shortly to serve as an alternate.

Harris has not played since being notified of a positive test for the banned substance Ligandrol on Feb. 15, on the eve of the 2024 Canadian women’s championship. She was handed a provisional suspension by World Curling on March 12.

She was cleared to return to action on Jan. 14 after the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled she was not at fault for the positive test.

In the announcement on Instagram, Team Einarson says it is happy Harris has been cleared to return to curling but the Tournament of Hearts roster was set before news of her reinstatement was announced.

Burgess departed Chelsea Carey’s squad earlier this month to join Einarson as a replacement for second Shannon Birchard, who is out the remainder of the season with a knee injury.

Einarson’s team from Gimli, Man., is the second-ranked squad in Canada behind Ottawa’s Rachel Homan.

The 2025 Canadian women’s curling championship begins Feb. 14 in Thunder Bay, Ont.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 24, 2025.