The first major new curling rink has been announced. 

Six-time Scotties Tournament of Hearts champion Jennifer Jones announced she will take over skip duties for Team Mackenzie Zacharias for the next Olympic quadrennial. 

“When I came home from the Olympics, I knew in my heart that I wanted to keep curling. When we realized that our team would be going in different directions, I really put some thought into what team I could put together or what team I could join and I kept coming back to Team Zacharias,” Jones said in a press release. “Mackenzie, Karlee, Emily and Lauren are so talented and definitely the future stars of our game. They are also great people who are full of energy and excitement and want to grow and learn as curlers. In talking with them we had the same goals and we really believed we could create a winning formula on the ice and have a lot of fun along the way. The fact that we are all from Manitoba just makes it that much more special.”

The news comes days after Team Jones announced they were disbanding at season's end following an Olympic appearance in Beijing last month. 

Team Zacharias, led by their 22-year-old skip Mackenzie, has competed in the past two Canadian championships, posting a 5-3 record this year in Thunder Bay and just missing the playoffs after a tiebreaker loss to Kerry Galusha. The team is rounded out by Karlee Burgess at third, Emily Zacharias at second and Lauren Lenentine at lead. 

The rink out of Altona, Man., also won the 2020 World Junior Curling Championship.

“We are so excited for the opportunity to play with and learn from Jennifer Jones, someone who we’ve looked up to in Manitoba for so long,” said Mackenzie Zacharias. “Jennifer is a legend in women’s curling and has won everything there is to win. The wealth of experience and knowledge she brings to the curling ice is unmatched but she is also a great person and leader. We absolutely can’t wait to get on the ice next season.”

Jones, 47, is one of the best curlers of all-time, owning a record-tying six national titles, two world championships and Olympic gold from 2014.