Hailey Duff has entered the record books as Angus’s first Olympic gold medallist in a stratospheric rise to the pinnacle of curling.
And the Forfar 25-year-old is guaranteed a hero’s welcome when she returns from Beijing to the town rink where she threw her first stone in a come-and-try session as a shy primary school youngster.
But just a year ago, the New Zealand-born star could only dream of being part of the Team GB rink whose exploits gripped the nation in the wee small hours of Sunday.
Her “unflappable” approach to the sport was in evidence throughout the Games.
It’s a calmness and maturity which helped the young sportswoman through the tragedy and trauma of the Manchester Arena bombing five years ago.
Unexpected path to gold
The rink’s rise to Winter Olympics glory is the stuff of fairytales for a team forged from a changed selection process.
It’s the ultimate vindication of the approach – and the reward for countless hours of dedication to the sport by all of the group.
Hailey was among nine players aiming for Olympic selection under the new system British Curling brought in after the women’s team missed out automatic Beijing qualification.
Her proud father, John, says Hailey’s steely determination carried her into the side and on to gold medal glory alongside Eve Muirhead, Vicky Wright, Jennifer Dodds and Mili Smith.
“We are just so incredibly proud of her, it’s a fantastic achievement for the whole team,” said John.
Dominant final
And he admitted the manner of Team GB’s emphatic 10-3 victory over Japan made it all the sweeter.
John and Forfar Indoor Sports owner Mike Ferguson watched the final in a Lanarkshire hotel during their involvement in the 2022 Scottish Seniors competition.
“They really bossed the game from start to finish,” said John, runner-up in the 2020 Scottish Seniors.
“Japan were always defending and the whole team were so calm.
“It was a great performance from every player.”
How it all began
John started in the sport with his father at the old Dundee Ice Rink.
“We then went to New Zealand, where Hailey was born so I didn’t play for a long time,” he said.
“We came back to Forfar and when Hailey was about eight I took her and her sister along to a come-and-try session at the rink in the town.
“She just loved it.
“I said that if she was going to start playing then I’d get back into curling as well.
“So as Hailey grew up we started playing in mixed doubles together.”
Their talent took the dad-and-daughter pairing to the semi-finals of the Scottish together in 2015.
But John could see Hailey was eyeing greater goals and destined for bigger success.
“She was getting better all the time – and I was getting older and worse!” quipped the ecstatic father.
Olympic selection
John added: “She has come from the outside in, in a very short period of time.
“But Hailey has worked her socks off for years, always trying to improve and learn.
“Once she was in that squad it all just gelled.
“The team dynamics in curling are huge. It’s just a chemistry.
“They really were playing fantastically well as a unit – even though Hailey had never played lead in her life.
“She is 25 and six years younger than Eve so never in a month of Sundays did she think he would be playing with her at the Olympics in 2022.
“But having made it into the squad she was always eyeing up Milan 2026.
“Hailey has a steely determination. If she has a goal in mind, she doesn’t let anything stop her.
“And she is completely unflappable. In curling, just as in any sport, that is a great asset.”
The family bond is strong away from the ice with Hailey working as a buyer for the Garden Furniture Scotland business in Forfar during the curling off-season.
And John hopes the game will enjoy a major boost from the women’s amazing achievement.
Forfar success story
It’s another amazing chapter in the success story of the Forfar rink.
Town-born Greg Drummond – a member of the Team GB coaching squad – wrote his name into the history books as a 2014 silver medallist in Sochi.
John added: “I hope that the curlers doing so well at the Olympics will really bring a lot of interest because it is such a great sport.
“Curling really brought Hailey out of her shell when she was young.
“It’s such a sociable and friendly sport and she has gone on to make so many friends all over the world through curling.
“But it’s not an easy sport.
“These guys are in the gym five days a week – it’s physically very demanding as well as the mental side of the game.
“But we are just all so proud of her today.”
