World Curling inducts 2024 Hall of Fame recipients

World Curling is pleased to announce the induction of five new members into the World Curling Hall of Fame.

There will be two inductees into the “Athlete” category, Thomas Ulsrud from Norway and Sonja Gaudet from Canada. The third inductee, Les Harrison from Canada will be inducted into the “Builder” category, while the final inductees, Jalle Jungnell from Sweden and Pål Trulsen from Norway will be inducted into the combined “Athlete and Builder” category.

World Curling President Beau Welling said, “I would like to offer my sincere congratulations to all five of our World Curling Hall of Fame inductees.

“It is particularly special to welcome Thomas Ulsrud into the Hall of Fame. Thomas was an exceptional world champion and ambassador for our sport and is deeply missed in our community.

“It is also wonderful to see Les Harrison inducted. His impact on our sport cannot be understated. As a former President of World Curling, he contributed greatly to our sport in many ways and became part of a small fraternity of people who have undertaken this role. During that time, Les was instrumental in our involvement with the Winter Universiade, contributing to it becoming a medal sport in 2007.

“Congratulations to Thomas, Sonja, Les, Jalle and Pal! Our five new inductees are all extremely worthy recipients of the Freytag Award, which is the highest honour we can bestow in our sport.”

Inductees

Thomas Ulsrud (Norway – Athlete)

Thomas Ulsrud was one of the most decorated and most popular curlers of the past decades. His international curling career lasted for over 35 years, starting with the Uniroyal World Junior Curling Championships in 1985, and concluding at the Le Gruyère AOP European Curling Championships in 2019.

He participated in three Olympic Winter Games, winning silver in 2010 in Vancouver, Canada. He took part in 12 world men’s championships, taking medals from five. He was crowned world men’s champion in 2014 in Beijing, China.

He represented Norway at 17 European championships and medalled at 11 of them. His team took back-to-back European gold medals in 2010 and 2011.

During the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games, Thomas and his team introduced the now famous Fancy Pants to the game, which brought a new and dynamic take on the curling uniform. The Fancy Pants became a core component of Team Ulsrud’s branding for the remainder of their career, bringing significant attention to both the team and our sport.

Sonja Gaudet (Canada – Athlete)

Sonja Gaudet is one of the most decorated wheelchair curlers, winning three Paralympic Winter Games and three gold medals from world championships.

Her Paralympic medal record is perfect. She took part in three Winter Paralympics and won gold at all three: in 2006 in Torino, Italy, in 2010 in Vancouver, Canada and in 2014 in Sochi, Russia.

She represented Canada at eight world wheelchair championships and was crowned world champion at three: in 2009 in Vancouver, Canada, in 2011 in Prague, Czechia and in 2013 in Sochi, Russia.

Les Harrison (Canada – Builder)

Les Harrison served curling as a volunteer in several organisations in numerous roles. He served as World Curling President from 2006 to 2010. He also held the Vice-President position for six years and served as a Member of the Executive Board for three years.

He also played a significant role in the inclusion of curling as a medal sport at the Winter Universiade in 2007.

Serving as Vice-Chair of International Relations at the Canadian Olympic Committee, he played a key role in the development of mixed doubles as a new discipline in the sport.

Jalle Jungnell (Sweden – Athlete & Builder)

As an athlete, Jalle won two Paralympic bronze medals: in 2006 in Torino, Italy and in 2010 in Vancouver, Canada. He also won silver medals at two world championships: in 2009 in Vancouver and in 2013 in Sochi, Russia.

He has been awarded the Sportsmanship Award three times and has been a role model for wheelchair athletes since the discipline was created.

As a builder, Jalle has played an important role in the development of wheelchair curling, since the first clinics in 2000 in Switzerland. There, he was part of the group that tried out the sport, started its development and created the rules.

He served on the Board of the Swedish Curling Association (2014-2023) and has also been involved in the Swedish Paralympic Committee as a delegate from curling.

Pål Trulsen (Norway – Athlete & Builder)

As an athlete, Pål Trulsen won silver at the Olympic Winter Games in 1992 in Albertville, France, when curling was a demonstration sport. Ten years later he was crowned Olympic champion in Salt Lake City, United States when curling was a medal sport.

He also won three world championship medals and stood on the podium of European championships twice. One of his European medals is gold from 2005.

As a builder, during his time as General Secretary for the Norwegian Curling Association, nine dedicated curling arenas have been built since 2010 with another venue planned. Trulsen has provided valuable support and advise during the planning and building process.

During his time as General Secretary, Norway has hosted three World Curling events: the Le Gruyère European Curling Championships in 2013, the World Mixed Doubles and Senior Championships in 2019, all in Stavanger, and the Le Gruyère AOP European Curling Championships 2021 in Lillehammer. Pål Trulsen’s engagement and support during planning and execution were instrumental to the success of these events.

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