The 2023 Scotties Tournament of Hearts will bring with it a $5-million economic spinoff to the Kamloops economy.

That is according to Mayor Ken Christian, who says the national event – set for Feb. 17 and 26, 2023 at the Sandman Centre – will lead to a resurgence in curling locally.

“I think the timing of this is particularly important as we sort of emerge from the COVID pandemic and we start to do things together again,” he said. “I think that sort of feeling of connectedness will embrace the entire community.”

“Hopefully we’ll be past all of these kinds of restrictions then. My hope is that part of the legacy of this event will be to help both the North Kamloops and the Kamloops Curling Club really have a resurgence of curling here in Kamloops.”

Christian says he’s also confident that the organizers will find the roughly 400 volunteers that are needed for the February 2023 event at the Sandman Centre.

Lisa Strachan, the Director of Destination Development with Tourism Kamloops, says she is glad to see the February event take place during a tourism shoulder season.

“This will be a significant boost for our economy in times when we do need it the most,” she added. “We saw that though COVID many, if not all, events for a time were cancelled and this announcement gives us renewed excitement and energy moving into 2022 and beyond.”

And like Mayor Christian, Strachan says events like the Scotties Tournament of Hearts will help bring Kamloopsians together.

“Which is exactly what we need right now,” she said.

“You made the right choice when you picked Kamloops to host and we are excited to prove that to you. Tourism Kamloops is ready to dig in and support however possible and we can’t wait to welcome you in just over a year.”