Nova Scotia·NewThe world champion curler and journalist died at age 65 on Tuesday following a battle with cancer. Canadian curlers in Halifax for the Olympic trials shared what she meant to them and the sport.The world champion curler and journalist, 65, died on Tuesday following a battle with cancerAnjuli Patil · CBC News · Posted: Nov 26, 2025 5:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 6 minutes agoListen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Colleen Jones began her run of four consecutive Scotties wins with this final rock that needed an official measurement to secure the win. Athletes at the 2025 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials in Halifax took a moment away from competition to honour Colleen Jones and reflect on her legacy.The world champion curler and journalist from Halifax passed away at the age of 65 on Tuesday following a battle with cancer.”I remember being a young curler and watching her and looking up to her and she was always so helpful to me,” Brad Gushue, the 2006 Olympic gold medallist, told reporters.Gushue, from St. John’s, said he learned Jones had passed away after a game on Tuesday. He said she was a friend.”She was an inspiration. During the time when I was growing up she was the biggest curler in Atlantic Canada and the biggest curler in the world,” he said. “She won six Canadian championships and she dominated women’s curling for a long period of time and to have her so close to my home, it was an inspiration for me.”A spectator at the Olympic curling trials in Halifax holds up a sign that reads Colleen = G.O.A.T. G.O.A.T stands for ‘greatest of all time.’ (CBC)Gushue said Jones loved curling and was passionate about it.”When you saw her out on the ice, the energy and enthusiasm that she had — it was fun,” he said.Kevin Koe, a four-time Canadian and two-time world champion from Calgary, remembered Jones as an “amazing” woman and athlete. He was interviewed by Jones at the Pyeongchang Olympic Games in 2018.”I think everyone is so proud of her and not just the Maritimes, I mean, I think all Canadians were. She represented us so well … it’s a sad day, but I just know everyone was proud of her,” Koe said.WATCH | Hear from Olympic champion Jennifer Jones:Olympic champion Jennifer Jones remembers curling legend Colleen JonesJennifer Jones, who won gold as skip of Canada’s women’s curling team at the 2014 Olympics, looks back at the contributions her namesake and friend Colleen Jones made to the sport, following the news of Colleen’s death at age 65. Brad Jacobs, the 2014 Olympic gold medallist, described Jones as a curling icon.”I was fortunate enough to spend one last little event with her down in Nashville at the end of the last curling season,” Jacobs said, remembering her characteristic playing style.”Super intense, always chewing gum. You know, she played to win. She was a great champion,” he said.’A legend, an icon, a friend’Kim Kelly, a member of Jones’s world championship team, said Jones would want to be remembered as an authentic person who cared.”I think she would want people to remember her as a warm, compassionate, caring human. And I think what I will miss most is all of her,” Kelly said, holding back tears.Kelly said Jones taught her how win and live life large.”Sometimes when the person is living, you keep those things to yourself because you think you either have time to tell them. But just from the reaction today, all you have to do is listen to what everbody says out there. She’s a legend, an icon, a friend,” Kelly said.MORE TOP STORIESABOUT THE AUTHORAnjuli Patil is a reporter with CBC Nova Scotia’s digital team.
‘She played to win’: curlers pause during Olympic trials to remember Colleen Jones
