Fry's behaviour 'absolutely unacceptable': Brad Jacobs

Brad Jacobs issued a statement on Monday on behalf of his rink following the news that Team Jacobs third Ryan Fry was disqualified from a World Curling Tour event in Red Deer, Alta. over the weekend.

“When I heard about the situation, I called the Red Deer Curling Club and spoke with the manager. We needed to hear the entire story and make sure we knew exactly what happened. We do not in any way support the behaviour that was displayed on and off the ice, it is absolutely unacceptable. This has been shared with Ryan and we are handling it internally as a team.”

Fry was participating in the Red Deer Curling Classic as a member of Jamie Koe’s team in the event and the team was ejected from the tournament for “unacceptable behaviour” CBC reports.

The story has since been picked up by news outlets around the world.

Fry issued a statement to CBC Sports that said, “I would like to sincerely apologize to the fans, participants and organizers of the Red Deer Curling Classic.”

“I came to the event to play and enjoy the sport. My actions were truly disrespectful and embarrassing – the committee was right to disqualify us from play.”

Wade Thurber, manager of the Red Deer Curling Centre, told CBC “They went out to curl and they were extremely drunk and breaking brooms and swearing and just unacceptable behaviour that nobody wants to watch or hear or listen to and it was just 'enough was enough.’”

Koe also issued a statement on Monday through his Twitter feed.

“Due to a lapse in judgment on Saturday, we contributed to an unpleasant experience for others. Although I removed myself from the last game before it started, the actions from the team led to our disqualification. We were disrespectful and the committee was right to disqualify us from further play which we did not argue.”

"They were upstairs in our lounge beforehand and everything kind of seemed normal I guess," Thurber told the Canadian Press on Monday. "Our bar staff eventually cut them off and then it was time for them to go curl.

"That was probably the unfortunate thing was they had to go curl."

Fry, who won Olympic gold at the 2014 Winter Games, normally plays third for Team Brad Jacobs. He was filling in as a substitute on a Koe team that included Chris Schille and DJ Kidby.

Koe, who has represented the Northwest Territories at several national championships, tried a practice slide before Saturday's game but it did not go well and he decided to sit out.  

"He was too drunk to play," Thurber said from Red Deer. "They played three-handed."

Thurber said Kidby and Schille did their best to get Fry to focus on the game, but were unsuccessful.

"On the ice, he broke three brooms," Thurber said. "There was of course foul language, and a little bit of disruption with the sheets beside them."

"The other guys were trying to control Ryan and they couldn't," he added. "He just got past that point of being able to tell him anything. There was some damage in the locker room and some broombags kicked around. It was just conduct that was unacceptable."

The opposing team, skipped by Kody Hartung, went on to post a 10-5 victory. The teams shook hands after seven ends.

"I would like to sincerely apologize to the fans, participants and organizers of the Red Deer Curling Classic," Fry said in a statement issued by Curling Canada on Monday. "I came to the event to play and enjoy the sport, but a bad lapse in judgment affected the experience for others. My actions were truly disrespectful and embarrassing — the committee was right to disqualify us from play.

"I allowed myself to lose control — I offended people with my actions and I wish nothing more than to apologize to everyone individually. I will be taking proper steps to ensure this problem can never happen again. I will continue to strive to become a better version of myself while contributing positively to the sport and curling community that I love so much."

Team Koe's last game on Sunday was declared a forfeit.

- with files from The Canadian Press