CALGARY — A back injury forced Darren Moulding and Joanne Courtney to withdraw from the Home Hardware Canadian mixed doubles curling championship on Sunday.

Moulding suffered back spasms overnight and was unable to play in the early draw at the Markin MacPhail Centre. The Moulding/Courtney duo decided to pull out of the event later in the day, Curling Canada said in a release.

"This was not an easy decision because Joanne and I were doing very well together and I felt like we could accomplish something special,” said Moulding. "But Joanne could not have been more supportive and understanding."

Kadriana Sahaidak and Colton Lott were awarded a 1-0 victory for the forfeit win.

Moulding, who won a Canadian men's team title earlier this month, is hopeful that his back will respond to physiotherapy treatment. His Alberta-based team will represent Canada at the world men's curling championship in less than two weeks.

"The world men’s championship is extremely important for Olympic qualifying for Canada and I’ll be working hard and getting all of the necessary treatments to make sure my back is healthy in time for our opening game on April 2,” Moulding said.

There are 35 pairings entered in the mixed doubles competition. The top 12 teams will advance to the playoffs starting Tuesday.

"Playing with Darren in mixed doubles was an absolute joy and I know how hard this hit him to have to withdraw, but I totally support our decision," said Courtney. “We had a great time together and I hope we can team up again in the future.

"I’ll be cheering for Darren and Team Canada at the world championship next month."

The mixed doubles final is set for Thursday.