John Benton (curler)

John Benton (born June 23, 1969) is an American curler from Plymouth, Minnesota. He competed on John Shuster's team at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.

John Benton
Curler
Born (1969-06-23) June 23, 1969
Stillwater, Minnesota
Team
Curling clubFour Seasons Curling Club, Blaine, MN,
St. Paul, Minnesota
SkipJared Allen
ThirdMichael Roos
SecondKeith Bulluck
LeadMarc Bulger
AlternateJohn Benton
Career
World Championship
appearances		1 (2009)
Olympic
appearances		1 (2010)
Medal record
Men's curling
Representing Minnesota
United States Men's Curling Championship
2009 Broomfield
2017 Everett
United States Olympic Curling Trials
2009 BroomfieldTeam
2017 OmahaTeam

Curling career

Benton started curling in 1975 and competed at his first and only U.S. Junior National Championship in 1987.[1] He has competed at the United States Men's Championship ten times, his first in 1997.

In 1991 Benton qualified for his first Olympic Trials but failed to make it to the Games. He would go on to compete in the Olympic Trials two more times, in 1997 and 2005, before finding success his fourth time in 2009.[2] Benton's team won the 2009 Trials which earned them a spot representing the United States at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games as well as the 2009 World Championship, since the Trials were also that year's National Championship. Benton played as lead on the team, which included John Shuster (skip), Jason Smith (third), and Jeff Isaacson (second). Chris Plys joined the team as alternate after the Olympic Trials.

In April 2009, Benton's team participated in the Men's World Championship in Moncton, Canada. His team placed fifth with a 7–4 record.[3] At the 2010 Olympics, Team USA finished 10th with a record of 2–7.[4] After the Olympics Benton left the team to form his own team.

Benton was hired by NBC Sports to work as a curling analyst during the 2014 Winter Olympics.[5]

At the 2017 United States Men's Championship Benton played second for Todd Birr. Team Birr earned a silver medal, losing to Team John Shuster in the final.[6]

Benton has helped Jared Allen's team of ex-NFL players turned curlers, both as coach and alternate.[7]

Personal life

He is a member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity's Beta Pi chapter at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities campus.

Teams
Season Skip Third Second Lead Events
2008–09 John ShusterJason SmithJeff IsaacsonJohn Benton2009 USMCC/USOCT, 2009 WMCC
2009–10 John ShusterJason SmithJeff IsaacsonJohn Benton2010 OG
2010–11 John BentonAndy JukichJeff PuleoErik Ordway
2011–12 John BentonRyan Lemke (fourth)Jake WillSteve Day
2015–16 Todd BirrDoug PottingerJohn BentonTom O'Connor2016 USMCC
2016–17 Todd BirrRich RuohonenJohn BentonTom O'Connor2017 USMCC

References
  1. "John Benton profile". USA Curling. Archived from the original on April 15, 2012.
  2. "John Benton". Team USA. Retrieved 2019-06-06.
  3. "Ford World Men's Curling Championship 2009: Tournament details". results.worldcurling.org. Retrieved 2019-06-06.
  4. "XXI. Olympic Winter Games 2010: Tournament details". results.worldcurling.org. Retrieved 2019-06-06.
  5. Dougherty, Pete (January 14, 2014). "Catalon, Strader among 84 Olympic broadcasters for NBC". Times-Union. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
  6. "USA Men's National Curling Championship: Scores". Retrieved 2019-06-06.
  7. Sussman, Matt. "Jared Allen's Curling Team Of Ex-NFLers Is Starting From The Bottom And Aiming For The Olympics". Deadspin. Retrieved 2019-06-06.
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