Curlers raise more than $2,300 for Canadian Cancer Society through push-up challenge
By Devin Heroux
Mission accomplished.
Fifty elite curlers from all corners of the globe have just completed a push-up challenge to raise funds for the Canadian Cancer Society.
In total, the curlers racked up 2,342, which means more than two thousand dollars has been raised.
For the past number of weeks curlers have been pumping out as many push-ups as possible — then nominating others to do the same.
It all came in the wake of The Curling Group’s CEO Nic Sulsky first posting his 55 push-ups on Instagram and calling out others to do the same. Sulsky sweetened the challenge by saying he would donate one dollar per push-up to the Canadian Cancer Society.
“I could have never imagined that my set of push-ups would lead to this response,” Sulsky said. “But it perfectly exemplifies the type of people we have at the highest levels of curling.”
Last season, TCG raised more than $17,000 through different initiatives.
“I have to give credit to my daughter Ava for planting the idea in my brain and Joanne Courtney for lighting the fire with a great push-up story on Instagram,” Sulsky said.
“We’re trying to engage a younger audience, and Ava and Jo represent that. And then from there I had to put my money where my mouth is and start the challenge. My 55 push-ups got this party started, and it’s taken off from there. And I beat Colton Flasch by two push-ups.”
Some of the highlights from the challenge so far include Team Mouat’s Bobby Lammie racking up the most with 70 consecutive push-ups. Swedish curler, from Team Hasselborg, Sara McManus ratcheted things up by doing 100 push-ups in a single day.
And former Team Homan front-ender, Joanne Courtney, did 48 consecutive push-ups — the most on the women’s side. Then followed up again in another post with another 18 clapping push-ups.
One of the Rock League captains and two-time world champion skip, Bruce Mouat got the challenge over the 2,000 marks with 32 push-ups to close things out, before Korey Dropkin got 18 juniors to join him in a #TCGPushupChallengeSpree.
Each time a curler finished their challenge, they then posted the proof of their accomplishments while nominating the next.
Sulsky says there isn’t another sport on the planet where this happens, with this much traction.
“Dozens of Olympic champions and medallists, world and national champions, women, and men, are all taking part in this organically. And when you look at a map of where all these curlers doing push-ups live, it’s staggering to see the global reach of this sport,” Sulsky said.
The Curling Group has been clear about its objective in revolutionizing the sport by bringing a different energy to the game and to the fans. Sulsky says the Grand Slam of Curling is redefining the sport for the modern age.
With millions of fans nationwide and across the world, a new dedicated season format, enhanced league tentpoles, and an invigorated fan base, this is curling like you’ve never seen before.
“I think what stands out to me is that curlers are personalities. This reaffirms my belief that as soon as you allow them to be themselves and have some fun, it unleashes a side of curlers fans aren’t used to seeing. That’s what we’re doing. We’re creating a new energy around this sport and the curlers know it, feel it and are embracing it. This next season can’t come soon enough,” Sulsky said.
“And all these push-ups are raising funds for the Canadian Cancer Society. TCG raised over $17,000 over the last season, and I’m donating $1 per push-up, which has now ended in more than $2,300 raised.”
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What began as a lighthearted Instagram challenge by The Curling Group CEO Nic Sulsky has grown into a global fundraising effort for the Canadian Cancer Society, rallying more than 50 elite curlers from Canada, Scotland, Sweden, Korea, Japan, the U.S., Norway, and Switzerland. Sulsky kicked things off with 55 push-ups and a pledge to donate $1 per rep — and athletes quickly followed suit, completing more than 2,342 push-ups to date and raising $2,342.
This builds on TCG’s broader support for CCS, which includes $9,000 from Sulsky’s fundraising run in St. John’s, $6,000 from the Score4Cure in-game initiative, and $2,300 from St. John’s ticket sales, bringing the season total to more than $17,000. From Sara McManus’ 100 reps in Sweden to Team Kim’s 75 in Korea to Dropkin’s 250 push-ups with 18 U.S. juniors and Bobby Lammie’s 70 in Scotland, the challenge has become a testament to curling’s global community, camaraderie, and commitment to giving back.