Joshua Kirilenko’s love for (and skill at) curling has taken him to the next level. Recently, Kirilenko joined his fellow Team Robinson curlers in Sudbury, ON for the 2026 New Holland U20 Canadian Championship. The event took place March 28 to April 4 and was the highest level of curling Kirilenko has ever been a part of. “We had to qualify for nationals through provincials,” Kirilenko explained. “The top two teams at Saskatchewan provincials qualified for nationals. We were second at provincials.”
As for the U20 nationals, while Team Robinson did not have as much success on the ice as Kirilenko and his teammates were hoping for, he said it was an experience he will always cherish and one he will never forget. “We didn’t do the greatest – we went 2-6 – but the majority of games we lost were still very close,” Kirilenko said. “We were right there in every game, but it was difficult because a lot of the teams we faced had been there before and knew what to expect. We were a new team this year and had never curled at this level before. Overall, though, we did really well and kept things close right up until the end. It was very cool to represent Saskatchewan at a national event. Everyone who was there took a lot of pride in representing the province he or she came from.”
Team Robinson – which also includes skip Ethan Robinson, third Nathan Weiss and second Lewis Macdiarmid (Kirilenko served as the lead) along with coach Craig Robinson – formed for the first time at the start of the 2025-26 curling season. “This was our first year together,” Kirilenko noted. “I was contacted by Ethan through Facebook because I was looking for a U20 team I could join. He reached out and I said ‘let’s do it.’ That’s also how he found one of the other guys… We were kind of a thrown together team, but it ended up working out. We curled really well together. As for our future, however, three of us age out of U20 and will be too old next year… I’m sure we will all go our own separate ways. It was sort of a one-year thing, and I believe we all knew that at the start of the year.” In spite of the “thrown together” nature of the team, the foursome quickly found success by making it to the final at two Sask Cup competitions and by placing fourth overall in the Regina City Men’s Bonspiel, an event that included 52 teams in total. The 2026 Pharmasave U20 provincial championships where Team Robinson placed second and qualified for nationals was only the boys’ fourth competition. And, while the team itself may no longer be a thing, Kirilenko said the friendships he has made with Robinson, Weiss and Macdiarmid are sure to last a lifetime. “We got along great,” he said. “They’re funny, and we had no problems with each other all year. We curled and we had fun.”
Kirilenko also said his recent experience in Sudbury was another opportunity to create new friendships. “Meeting so many new people is right up there with the curling itself,” he said. “I made countless new friends from all over Canada. In the hotel they had a players’ lounge set up and, at the end of the day, you could go there and join in card games with the other curlers… Everyone there was in the same boat, competing in nationals and wanting to meet new people. That’s probably what I enjoyed the most.” Kirilenko also took some time to take in the sights and sounds of Sudbury. “We went to the Big Nickel in Sudbury, and got to go on a tour of the nickel mine,” he said. “We went something like 71 feet underground. They had it set up so you could learn about the different eras of mining from the 1800s upon to modern times. It was really cool.”
Meanwhile, it remains to be seen going forward what will happen next in Kirilenko’s curling career. He did say, however it’s a sport he’s been excited to be a part of for a long time and something he plans to continue with in whatever way he can. “I’ve loved curling forever,” he said. “It’s the one sport I can play over and over, and never get tired of. Also, the people you meet at the rinks are always great. They’re always really nice, which is a great aspect of the game.” He also has some words of advice for young curlers looking to follow in his footsteps. “Just get out there and practice,” Kirilenko said. “If you want to try to do what I did, find a competitive team to curl with. It’s harder for kids here in Meadow Lake because we’re so far away from the larger centres. But, if you’re willing to make the sacrifice of travelling, I recommend doing it. It’s how you get to the next level, it’s a really good experience and you will learn a lot from it. You will also make a lot of good memories and make a lot of new friends for the rest of your life.”