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The Skickos Find their Teams through Sporting Memories

At Sporting Memories we like to hear about all types of sports from members and volunteers, and with our support for sportscotland’s ‘Find Your Team’ campaign in full swing, we discovered more on how a couple involved at our Dunfermline Club have ignited a passion for Curling! 

Although Football, Cricket and Rugby often dominate the chat at Sporting Memories sessions, when another sport is mentioned the clubs are always keen to learn more. When Gary Waddell, Fife Club Co-ordinator, shared with the Dunfermline Club that he was representing Wales at the 2023 World Senior Curling Championships in Gangneung, South Korea, the members just had to hear more, so Gary ended up giving an impromptu but very engaging talk about this most winter of sports. 

In amongst the members was Mike Skicko who had recently retired from a busy career. Mike had joined the club to support his brother-in-law who had been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s and in his own words: “Sporting Memories increased my social circle a hundredfold after a life on the road with no time for friendships”.  

Mike enjoyed Gary’s talk and indeed it rekindled a flicker of interest in curling which he had tried a few times 30 years ago with his father-in-law. 

The following week Mike was playing a round of golf with a friend who shared casually that he had started with the local curling club the year before and was thoroughly enjoying, not only the game, but the companionship and team spirit. That was enough for Mike - He signed up at his local club, bought the shoes and went curling and slid gracefully on his backside at the first attempt! 

Despite the indignity of his first attempts, Mike was hooked and signed up for the beginners club, coaching and soon found himself slowly gaining confidence and ability. So much so, it wasn’t long before he was asked to sub for other clubs on a regular basis as well as play for his own team. A fabulous way to make new friends, keep fit and busy. 

Diane joins in too

Mike was so busy with curling that his wife Diane was hardly seeing him. So, in the best spirit of ‘If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em’ she signed up too. Taking up curling for Diane was a sweet moment. When she was at secondary school in Perth (Perth is a great bastion of the curling fraternity) the pupils were offered the chance to join the school teams. Diane and her friend Gillian eagerly put their hands up but were deemed not good enough. Roll on a few decades and both girls are now regular curlers playing for their own teams as well as being good enough to be asked to join other teams.   Here’s Diane in action.

Their new Teams and what it means

When we asked Mike and Diane, who now support the Club as volunteers, for a few comments on their new sport, the replies included: 

• Competitive but friendly 

• So welcoming 

• Confidence building 

• Loads of fun 

• So many different people from all walks of life 

• Inclusive with games for visually impaired and wheelchair users 

The Skickos have found a new passion all thanks to a 15-minute chat at Sporting Memories! That shows the power of finding your local community sports group so you can find your team!