Stranraer Olympic curling champion Vicky Wright retires at 28

Olympic champion Vicky Wright has announced she will be retiring from full-time curling.

The 28-year-old, from Stranraer, has confirmed she will be stepping away from the sport after an extraordinary season where she played as vice-skip to Eve Muirhead, and was part of the gold medal-winning team in Beijing earlier this year.

Earlier in the season Wright made history by becoming one of the first curlers to win the European Championships for Scotland in both the women’s and men’s game for the first time ever.

Wright had been part of the Scotland team that missed out on earning Team GB a place at this year’s Olympics after failing to secure one of the top six positions at last season’s World Championships.

This led to the creation of a nine-player squad at the beginning of this season. She later claimed a position on the Olympic team.

In a Twitter post, Wright said: “On the back of what can only be described as the most incredible experience winning Olympic gold in Beijing, it is with much pride I announce my retirement from full time curling to fully invest my time into my nursing career and family life.

“My journey to this point has not been without challenges, mainly balancing the demands of training full time with working a few shifts per week in a highly pressured hospital environment.

“Having a strong perspective on life is something I pride myself on and I am incredibly proud of how I achieved my curling goals, particularly in this last year when I kept up my shift work as an NHS Staff Nurse during a global pandemic.”

On behalf of British Curling, executive performance director Nigel Holl paid tribute to the effort Wright had made to juggle her careers.

He said: “The level of commitment required of modern curlers who aspire to achieve on the global stage now requires full-time commitment, so for Vicky to maintain that as she has, while still working as an NHS Staff Nurse has been a truly exceptional achievement.

“All the more so because of the turn-around that was required this season for our women to embark on what has been the greatest season in the history of British and Scottish curling, bringing home European, World and Olympic titles.

“We are extremely proud of and grateful to all of them for bringing us that success and we wish Vicky every success and happiness as she moves on to the next stage of her life.”