Images, videos and so many stories

Toby McDonald always chose to wake up with a smile. 

From his beginnings at the St. John’s Curling Club, Toby had a passion for the sport and its evolution in Newfoundland and Labrador. His crowning achievement was winning the Brier in 1976 with skip Jack MacDuff and the front end of Doug Hudson and Ken Templeton. Their victory was the first for Newfoundland, which had joined Canada in 1949 and the Brier in 1951. 

It would be another 41 years before Brad Gushue captured another title for the province. 

Toby shares memories from his early days to coaching Gushue to winning the Canadian Masters by a nosebleed. He revisits the 2006 Olympic Games and explains how Russ Howard joined Brad, Mark Nicols, Jamie Korab and Mike Adam to win the gold medal. 

Toby passed away on January 24, 2025.