Coquitlam curlers Zachary Umbach and his younger brother, Nicholas, are hoping the ice transforms from white to gold for them this weekend in Vernon -- and again next month in Dawson Creek.
The pair of Centennial secondary school students have a rare chance of winning back-to-back gold medals in a very short span, first at the BC Winter Games running today (Friday) through Sunday and then at the B.C. high school championships March 8-10.
Winning the BC Winter Games is paramount to 16-year-old Zachary, who was introduced to curling at age 12 by a friend and has his eye on then qualifying for B.C.'s Under-18 provincial squad.
"The first goal [at the Games] is make it through the round-robin," Zachary said on the phone Thursday morning from Vernon, where his mom, Nana, drove them Wednesday so that her boys could settle in early. "Then if we get to the medal round, we have a good chance at winning gold."
Grade 11's Zachary plays lead on the Tyler Tardi-skipped Langley rink that qualified for the Winter Games, beating out Nicholas's team in the process.
Nicholas, 14 and in Grade 9 at Centennial, was then picked up by Tardi to play fifth as a spare on his Games' foursome, a wonderful gesture being that Nicholas and Zachary play third and second respectively on the Kyle Habkirk rink with the Centaurs that last week advanced to the upcoming prep provincials in Dawson Creek.
"My stomach is already very nervous but it's a nice change from them playing against each other," Nana said from Vernon, where she's eager to watch her sons join forces to compete. "I am very proud of my boys for being here.
"Although it would be great for their team to make it to the [medal] podium, I hope they enjoy their experience at the BC Winter Games and cherish their moments here."
While Nicholas likes the idea of claiming Games' gold, he would just as soon win the B.C. high school crown.
"Winning the high school [title] would be really nice because my whole team is together there but winning the B.C. Games would be great, too," Nicholas said. "Both would be best."
Meanwhile, Habkirk's Centennial rink, which includes lead Kento Sato, beat the defending Fraser Valley-champion Clearbrook's MEI Eagles in both the semifinals and the final to move on to Dawson Creek, where he's confident his crew has a good shot at scooping gold.
The Eagles placed fourth at last year's prep provincials.
"Given how they did last year, I'm pretty confident we'll do well," Habkirk told The Tri-City News earlier.
