The 1986
Scott Tournament of Hearts, the
Canadian women's national
curling championship, was held from February 22 to March 1, 1986 at the
Thompson Arena in
London, Ontario.[2] The total attendance for the week was 21,023.[1] It was the first year the defending champions would get a berth into the competition and return as Team Canada, who was skipped by
Linda Moore.
Team Ontario, who was
skipped by
Marilyn Darte won the championship on home soil after defeating defending champion
Linda Moore and
Team Canada 7–3 in the final. This was the first women's championship for Ontario and the first of two skipped by Darte (later Bodogh). This was the third time that the host province had won the event, joining
New Brunswick in
1963 and
Saskatchewan in
1972.[3]
The event set or tied several scoring records of which have either been tied or still stand as of
2023.[4][5]
In Draw 9,
Newfoundland skip
Sue Anne Bartlett became the first player in Canadian women's championship history to have played in 100 games.
Canada's 8–0 victory over
Alberta in Draw 8 was the fourth time that a shutout occurred with the others being in
1963,
1970, and
1973. Additionally, this game only lasted four ends, which set a record for the fewest ends played in one game, which has since been matched twice in
1998 and
1999.
Canada's 3–2 victory over Newfoundland in the semifinal set the following records:
The five combined points scored tied a record set in
1971 for the lowest combined score between both teams in one game, which has been matched three times since. This still remains the lowest combined score in a semifinal game.
The six blank ends set a new record for most blank ends in one game, which has since been matched twice. This still remains a record for the most blank ends in a semifinal game.
Newfoundland blanked three straight ends beginning in the fifth end, which set a record for most consecutive blank ends in a semifinal game which hasn't been broken since.
The two points scored by Newfoundland also set a record for fewest points scored in a semifinal game by a single team, which hasn't been broken since either.
The three points scored in the final by Canada set a record for the fewest points scored in a final by one team. This has been matched three times since (
1987,
1992, and
1994).
The
Scotties Tournament of Hearts Sportsmanship Award is presented to the curler who best embodies the spirit of curling at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. The winner was selected in a vote by all players at the tournament.
Prior to 1998, the award was named after a notable individual in the curling community where the tournament was held that year. For this edition, the award was named after
Jo Wallace, a builder in women's curling as she helped organize the "Nifty Fifty" league, the forerunner to the Ontario Senior Ladies Curling Championship and also served as both the vice-president and president of the
Canadian Ladies Curling Association.[10]
^
abTeam New Brunswick alternate
Diane Blair threw lead stones for New Brunswick's final five draws (beginning Draw 10) as lead
Debbi Dickeson was sidelined with the flu.[7]