Thunder Bay, Ontario — Thunder Bay, Ont., curler Krista Scharf will join Team Despins as skip for the upcoming 2026 to 2027 season.
Scharf's previous team disbanded in March, after a decade of play that included multiple appearances at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. At the time, the team remarked most were stepping away to focus on family, but were leaving the door open to future curling appearances. This week, it was declared that Scharf, who represented both Ontario and Northern Ontario at the Scotties on 12 occasions, earning two silver medals and two bronze medals, is returning to the ice with Team Despins.
"I was pretty excited when the girls asked me," Scharf noted in an interview with CBC News on Tuesday, noting that she had been missing the sport since stepping away. "I wasn't expecting to play. I was thinking I was just going to be coaching my kids a little bit. So this is all new and fresh for me," she indicated.
Stepping onto the ice with a different group of players will be a "huge adjustment" she confirmed, but she's looking forward to it.
Scharf confirmed Team Despins reached out to her a couple of weeks ago to gauge her interest in playing with them. The team was in need of an additional player, because longtime team member Nicole Westlund-Stewart has been rehabilitating from a back injury sustained in January. Scharf welcomed the opportunity to resume some potential competitive play, while still maintaining flexibility with the sport and travel in her life. "I'm going to play a couple fields with them. I'm going to play some major league and I'll practice when I can, which I think is suitable to my life," she confirmed. “These girls are neighborhood girls. We played against them for many years. We know they’re really good. They’ve improved so much in the last few years,” Scharf advised, noting how she heard they’re also great teammates. Stepping onto the ice with a different group of players will be a "huge adjustment" she confirmed, but she's looking forward to it. “I hope to bring some experience to the team and help the girls out,” Scharf shared. “And I just think it’s really exciting joining a new team and getting a different perspective on their views of curling and how they do a lot of things on the ice and off the ice.” According to a media release released by Team Despins, the team intends to enter the upcoming season with its sights firmly set on competing for the Northern Ontario championship and earning a berth at the 2027 Scotties. As a new team with a new player — Abby Deschene — she declared they will have to practice significantly to reach that goal. “Practicing is really major and I think that’s something my old team did really well,” Scharf confirmed. When Deschene comes up from Sudbury, Scharf stated, she’ll try to get together with them as much as she can. “We’re going to practice hard leading up to the competition in January. Our ice doesn’t go in until October. So we don’t have a ton of time,” Scharf indicated. “The competitive person that I am, come December, I’m going to want to practice a lot to help the girls out and obviously try to play the best that I can and hopefully help the girls get to the Scotties. It’s such an amazing experience,” she continued. In addition to Scharf, Robyn Despins will play third, Deschene in second, Rebecca Carr in lead and Westlund-Stewart will take on the role of fifth on the team. Nicky Shaw is a reporter for CBC Thunder Bay. She graduated with a Bachelor of Journalism and a minor in Environmental and Climate Humanities from Carleton University. Aligning with her passion for covering global environmental and humanitarian issues, she has worked to develop in-depth multimedia content that shares the diverse experiences of people in Northwestern Ontario. It is a priority for CBC to create products that are accessible to all in Canada including people with visual, hearing, motor and cognitive challenges. Closed Captioning and Described Video is available for many CBC shows offered onCBC Gem..
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📍 Source: CBC News Thunder Bay · By: CBC News Staff · 🗓️ August 14, 2026 · 🏠 ThunderBay.Online
