Atina Ford
- Atina Ford Johnston is not to be confused with Anita Ford, her mother and former coach
| Atina Ford Johnston | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 12, 1971 Gray, Saskatchewan, Canada |
| Team | |
| Curling club | Okotoks Curling Club, Okotoks |
Curling career  | |
| Member Association |  Saskatchewan (1990-2001) Alberta (2002-Present) |
| Hearts appearances | 2 (1997, 1998) |
| Other appearances | World Senior Championship: 1 (2025) |
| Top CTRS ranking | N/A |
| Grand Slam victories | 0 |
Medal record | |
Atina Ford Johnston (born October 12, 1971; née Ford) is a Canadian curler originally from Gray, Saskatchewan.[1] She is best known as the alternate of the Sandra Schmirler team, whith whom she is an Olympic Champion (1998),[2] World women's champion (1997) and Canadian women's champion (1997).
Early life
Ford is the daughter of curlers Gary and Anita Ford, and grew up in the hamlet of Gray, Saskatchewan. In addition to curling, she figure skated, and played ice hockey and fastball as a youth.[3] She attended Sheldon-Williams Collegiate in Regina for high school, and led a team to the provincial high school final in 1989.[4]
Curling career
Ford had a successful junior career, reaching its pinnacle in 1990. She led her rink of Darlene Kidd, Leslie Beck and sister Cindy to a provincial championship, defeating Marla Miller in the Saskatchewan junior final.[5] The team then went on to represent Saskatchewan at the 1990 Canadian Junior Curling Championships, played in the Sudbury, Ontario suburb of Garson. Ford led her team to an 8–2 round robin record, and then won both their playoff games, including Manitoba's Nancy Malanchuk rink in the final. The team then went on to represent Canada at the 1991 World Junior Curling Championships in Glasgow, Scotland. There, she led her team to an undefeated record in the round robin, only to lose in the semifinal to Sweden's Eva Eriksson rink. With the loss, the team took home a bronze medal.
In 1999, she was inducted into Canadian Curling Hall of Fame together with all of the Sandra Schmirler team.[6]
She moved to Sherwood Park, Alberta in 2001.[3]
She made her return to nationals-level curling by skipping the Alberta rink at the 2023 Canadian Senior Curling Championships, where her team finished fourth.[7] Ford-Johnston returned to the seniors in 2024, winning 5-4 against Ontario's Jo-Ann Rizzo in the gold medal game, and will represent Canada at the 2025 World Senior Curling Championships.
Personal life
Ford currently lives in Okotoks, Alberta[7]
References
- ^ "The Atina Ford File". Regina Leader-Post. February 7, 1998. p. G14. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- ^ "1998 Winter Olympics – Nagano, Japan – Curling" Archived 2007-08-25 at the Wayback Machine – databaseOlympics.com (Retrieved on March 20, 2008)
- ^ a b "Atina (Ford) Johnston".
- ^ "Reube takes title". Regina Leader-Post. March 6, 1989. p. 10. Retrieved December 7, 2024.
- ^ "Ford runs over competition". Regina Leader-Post. February 19, 1990. p. 10. Retrieved December 7, 2024.
- ^ Ford, Atina — CCA Hall of Fame | ACC Temple de la Renommée Virtuelle
- ^ a b "Okotoks skip proud of strong showing at Canadian seniors championships". Western Wheel. December 18, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2024.
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- 1971 births
- Living people
- Canadian women curlers
- Olympic curlers for Canada
- Curlers at the 1998 Winter Olympics
- Olympic gold medalists for Canada
- World curling champions
- Curlers from Saskatchewan
- Canadian people of German descent
- Olympic medalists in curling
- Medalists at the 1998 Winter Olympics
- Canada Cup (curling) participants
- Curlers from Alberta
- People from Okotoks
- Sportspeople from Sherwood Park
- Canadian curling biography stubs
- Canadian Winter Olympic medalist stubs