A local Paralympic champion will honoured this week as the Peterborough Curling Club will be holding a community celebration for gold medallist Jon Thurston.
The event is set for Friday at 6 pm at the club located at 2195 Lansdowne Street West. The community is invited to attend, with cake available and the bar open for refreshments as residents gather to congratulate Thurston on his latest international success.
Thurston was part of Canada’s wheelchair curling team that captured gold at the 2026 Paralympic Winter Games in Milano Cortina. The team made history during the competition, finishing undefeated in round-robin play before securing the championship win over China.
A key member of Team Canada, Thurston competes as the fourth shooter for skip Mark Ideson and has built a strong international resume. He previously helped Canada earn bronze at the 2022 Paralympic Games and has been part of multiple World Championship teams, earning silver medals in 2020, 2023 and 2024, along with bronze in 2025.
Thurston earned his place on the national squad following a skills-based shootout in 2019 and later competed in his first Paralympic Games in 2022. He has also been involved in Canada’s NextGen program and continues to compete at the highest level of the sport.
Beyond curling, Thurston has competed in other adaptive sports including water skiing, archery, boxing and jiu-jitsu.
The celebration in Peterborough is open to the public and will offer local residents a chance to recognize one of the city’s top Paralympic athletes.
