The World Curling Federation (WCF) and Curling Canada have confirmed today that The World Mixed Doubles and Senior Curling Championships 2017 will be held in Lethbridge, Canada, between Saturday 22 and 29 April 2017.
 It will be the second time Curling Canada has hosted the combined World Mixed Doubles and World Seniors events. In 2013 the championships were held in Fredericton, New Brunswick, while in 2012 Lethbridge was the host city of the Ford World Women’s Curling Championship.
 The events will be staged under one roof at the brand new state-of-the-art Crossings Ice Complex in the southern Alberta city. It will be the first major championship at the facility, which will boast a 10-sheet dedicated curling rink and two hockey arenas. The complex is scheduled to open in September 2016.
 This championship will be the final chance for countries to clinch a place in the inaugural Mixed Doubles Curling event at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games.
 WCF President, Kate Caithness, said: “The World Curling Federation is delighted to award these joint Championships to Lethbridge in Canada.
 “The opportunity to bring both championships under one roof, to allow for supporters and athletes to enjoy all the curling that’s on offer, was a significant factor in this award, and the WCF looks forward to working with the local organising committee to ensure that these events are a great success.
“The competition is set to be extremely exciting, with not only the World Mixed Doubles and Senior Championships titles on offer, but it will be the last chance for Mixed Doubles teams to earn Olympic qualifying points for PyeongChang 2018.”
2017 will be the 10th edition of the World Mixed Doubles Championship. Since the event’s inception in 2008 in Vierumäki, Finland, Swiss teams have won a leading five gold medals, followed by Hungary with two and Russia with one.
 The World Senior Championships, meanwhile, debuted in 2002, and before they were combined with the World Mixed Doubles, Canada hosted them in 2003 in Winnipeg and 2007 in Edmonton.
Canada has been successful at the 50-and-over level over the 14-year history of the event, winning the women’s gold 10 times and the men’s gold nine times.
 The 2016 World Mixed Doubles and World Seniors are scheduled for April 16-23 in Karlstad, Sweden.
 “We’re excited to see what will take place in Lethbridge in 2017,” said Pat Ray, acting Chief Executive Officer for Curling Canada. “Lethbridge has a history of hosting first-class championships, and with Mixed Doubles set to make its Olympic debut, the stakes will be very high, so the city is in for a treat.”
 At the 2015 World Mixed Doubles and Seniors in Sochi, Russia, there were 30 countries in the Mixed Doubles championship, 25 countries contesting the senior men’s championship and 13 countries playing for the senior women’s title.
 “We’ve got an enthusiastic curling community in Lethbridge that is eager to put on a wonderful show, both for the curlers and the fans,” said Mike Mulroy, Chair of the Lethbridge Host Committee. “This is an amazing opportunity to showcase the sport in a beautiful new facility, and we’re preparing for a week of world-class curling.”