Jennifer Jones

Early Years and Junior Career

Jennifer Jones grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Her parents, Carol and Larry Jones, were both curlers and introduced her to the sport at age 11.

At age 15, Jones won her first provincial tournament as part of a rink (team) that included her younger sister. Their father, Larry, was the coach. “He’s the one who had this love of curling that was infectious in my family,” Jones told the CBC one year after his death. “He lived vicariously through me every time I played.”

Playing third to skip Jill Staub, Jones captured the Manitoba provincial junior title in 1991, earning a trip to the Canadian Junior Curling Championships in Leduc, Alberta. Despite finishing the round-robin portion in first place with a 10–1 record, Jones’s team lost in the final to Team New Brunswick.

After the tournament, Jones became the skip of her own rink. She returned to the junior championships in two of the next three years. In 1994, Team Jones captured the national junior title. 

The Shot and Pro Career

Jones’s rink won the 2002 Manitoba Scotties Tournament of Hearts. She then made her debut at the national Scotties Tournament of Hearts, where Canada’s top female curler is crowned annually. Jones lost in the playoffs and did not return to the national championships for another three years.

In 2005, the Jones rink, which featured Cathy Gauthier at lead, long-time teammate Jill Officer at second, and Cathy Overton-Clapham at third, returned to the Tournament of Hearts. After earning the top seed with a 9–2 round-robin record, Jones’s Manitoba rink beat British Columbia 8–7 in the playoffs, earning a bye to the finals versus Ontario.

Facing an Ontario rink skipped by Jenn Hanna, the finals came down to one shot — a miss and Jones would be eliminated; a win and Manitoba would be crowned national champions. With a shot rock on the button, Jones hit off an Ontario stone sitting well outside the house. The Manitoba stone ricocheted off the opposing stone and took out the shot rock. The perfect placement earned Manitoba four points and an 8–6 victory. CBC curling analyst Mike Harris called it “the best shot I’ve ever seen to win a game.” It became known simply as “The Shot.” 

“The Shot” helped book Jones’s rink their first trip to the world championships. However, they fell short of a medal. Jones returned to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts in each of the next eight years. In 2008, Jones’s rink won the tournament for a second time and returned to the Women’s World Curling Championship. This time, Jones captured the gold medal with a 7–4 victory over China.

In 2009, Jones won her third Tournament of Hearts. Her success on the national stage continued, with gold medal victories at the tournament in 2015 and 2018, a silver medal in 2013 (when she also became just the second woman, after Colleen Jones, to reach 100 wins at the championships), and a bronze medal in 2012. In 2020, Jones and her rink received a wildcard entry, and she skipped her team to another bronze.

Her 2018 victory tied her with Colleen Jones for the national record with six Scotties victories. That same year, Jennifer Jones’s rink captured their second World Championship — 10 years after the first — with a dramatic 7–6 victory over Sweden.

In total, Jones has appeared in 15 Tournament of Hearts and has captured 15 Grand Slam of Curling titles. Her rink was ranked No. 1 in the Canadian Team Ranking System between 2005 and 2018.

Sochi Olympics

At the 2013 Olympic trials, Team Jones’ 6–1 round-robin record earned them the top seed. In the finals, they prevailed 8–4 over an Ontario team skipped by Sherry Middaugh, booking Jones’s first ticket to the Olympic Winter Games.

At the Games in Sochi, Russia, Jones’s rink — which included Dawn McEwen, Jill Officer, Kaitlyn Lawes and reserve Kirsten Wall — posted an impressive 9–0 record in round-robin play. They were the only undefeated rink in the tournament. Following a 6–4 victory in the semifinals against Great Britain, Canada faced Sweden and skip Margaretha Sigfridsson in the gold medal match. Jones and Canada prevailed with a tidy 6–3 win to capture Olympic gold. It was Canada’s second gold medal in Olympic women’s curling history and first since skip Sandra Schmirler’s 1998 gold in Nagano, Japan.

In 2019, a TSN panel named Jones the greatest Canadian women’s curler of all time.

Personal Life

Jones earned a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Manitoba in 1999. She works as the senior legal advisor for National Bank Financial.

In 2015, Jones married fellow curler Brent Laing, who curls for Kevin Koe’s Alberta rink. The couple has two daughters, Isabella and Skyla.

Accomplishments