Reigning World and European Champions Team Mouat and 2022 European Bronze medallists Team Morrison will represent Scotland at this season’s Men’s and Women’s World Championships.
Their selections reflect the consistency of both teams’ performances across the 2023/24 season and were made after a wide array of selection criteria were taken into consideration ahead of events that will mark the start of the qualification campaign for the Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina in 2026. (Please see Scottish Curling Selection Policy).
For Bruce Mouat, Grant Hardie, Bobby Lammie and Hammy McMillan it will be a fifth appearance at the World Championships as they look to add to a full set of medals, having claimed bronze on their debut in 2018, then silver in 2021, before they reached the top of the podium in Ottawa last year.
Just last month the only current Scottish team to have won a Grand Slam title once again demonstrated their capacity to beat the world’s best when they won their sixth Slam event at the Canadian Open and this season has seen them claim five more titles in all.
Those also include maintaining their supremacy at the European Championships, which they have won on all four occasions they have competed and at the Perth Masters, where they have won every title since 2018 and in third spot they remain the top Scottish team in the current world rankings.
“It means everything to us to be selected for the Worlds,” said skip Mouat.
“It is what we have worked for all season and it is incredibly important to me and all the boys to have the chance to represent Scotland.
“It is an honour to be selected and to have that responsibility to retain that world title as well as hopefully earn qualification points for Team GB for the next Olympics.
“The next two seasons are incredibly important in that respect and whilst we want to be back there at the next Olympics, we know how important that global exposure is for our sport.”
Rebecca Morrison, Sophie Sinclair, Sophie Jackson and Gina Aitken have meanwhile been selected to go to a third successive World Championships, along with Olympic gold medallist Jen Dodds, who went to last year’s event as their alternate, but has since become a full-time member of the line-up.
Having had their involvement curtailed the first time around when Covid struck their team on the eve of the event, they gained valuable experience a year ago and have further confirmed their standing in the sport over the past season with a current world ranking of 15.
“We are so excited to be selected to represent Scotland and feel we have unfinished business at the World Champs and are delighted to have been given this opportunity,” said skip Morrison.
“We have so much more potential as a team and are looking to build on our good results and finish this season on a high.”
The selection meeting took place following a high class Scottish Championships, which demonstrated the growing strength in depth in the men’s and women’s games.
In the men’s event, Team Mouat’s run that had brought victory in the previous four Scottish Championships they had contested ended when world ranked number four Team Whyte beat world ranked number nine Team Craik in a fiercely competitive final which went into extra time, while Team Morrison were beaten by the up and coming quartet which included reigning World Junior Championship winning skip Fay Henderson and Olympic gold medallist Hailey Duff.
However, as British Curling Executive Performance Director Nigel Holl explained, the selectors had to follow due process in making their decision.
“In seeking to maximise the chances of medal success for both Scotland and Team GB at major championships, together with Scottish Curling we identified the need, a few years ago, to develop an assessment process that takes into account performances and relevant data across a full season,” he said.
“That is all the more vital in seasons that see our teams seeking to accrue Olympic qualifying points and the selection panel was meticulous and rigorous in analysing all the evidence.
“The strength in depth in Scottish Curling means that teams currently have to compete with some of the best teams in the world in order to represent Scotland at major championships, underlining the importance of a clear selection process. 
“On that basis Teams Mouat and Morrison have earned the right to go to their respective World Championships and we confidently believe they both have the capacity to produce results that will enhance our chances of gaining automatic qualification in the men’s and women’s events in Milan-Cortina 2026.”
In the women’s event, with Team Morrison operating a five player set up for this season Gina Aitken will be the alternate for these championships, while Kyle Waddell who was the fifth player for Team Mouat’s gold medal winning campaigns at last year’s World and European Champs will again be joining them for their event in Switzerland.
The BKT Tires World Women’s Curling Champs take place in Sydney, Canada from 16 – 24 March while the LGT World Men’s Curling Champs Schaffhausen, Switzerland are from 30 March – 7 April.
For more information on the Women’s World Champs.
For more information on the Men’s World Champs.
Team Scotland
Team Mouat
Bruce Mouat
Grant Hardie
Bobby Lammie
Hammy McMillan
Kyle Waddell (alternate)
Team Morrison
Rebecca Morrison
Jen Dodds
Sophie Sinclair
Sophie Jackson
Gina Aitken (alternate)
Selection Panel
Mike Ferguson – Chair of Selection Panel (Non Voting)
Keith Prentice – Scottish Curling (Voting Member)
Nigel Holl – British Curling Executive Performance Director (Voting Member)
Greg Drummond – British Curling Olympic Head Coach (Voting Member)
Images: WCF
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