Off the heels of a successful Brier championships at Prospera Place, Kelowna has been tapped on the shoulder for another major curling event.

On Wednesday, March 12, World Curling announced that the Kelowna Curling Club will be hosting the last 2025 Olympic Qualifying Event (OQE) as teams try to punch their ticket to 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Games.

This is the first time Kelowna, and Canada is hosting this OQE, with the previous renditions taking place in the Netherlands (2021), Czech Republic (2017), and Germany (2013).

鈥淲e are looking forward to another excellent partnership with the Kelowna Curling Club as we return for the Olympic Qualification Event 2025," said World Curling president Beau Welling.

Over the years, the Kelowna Curling Club has hosted many international world curling competitions, with the latest being the 2023 Pan Continental Curling Championships.

鈥淜elowna is very excited to welcome the world back to Kelowna 鈥� the Pan Continental left a lasting impression on the city," said Kelowna Curling Club general manager Jock Tyre. 鈥淏eing a precursor to the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games will make this a huge must-see event for curling enthusiasts.鈥�

The games will begin on Dec. 6, 2025 and run until Dec. 19. Additionally, there will be three categories competing: men's, women's, and mixed doubles.

The top two teams at the end of the qualifier will fill in the final two Olympic spots available.