Having already drawn on the achievements of predecessors and contemporaries in the British Curling programme, Youth Olympic gold medallist Callie Soutar has acknowledged the importance of the environment created at the National Curling Academy after marking Scottish Women and Girls in Sport week with a notable victory in an international event.
Soutar, who partnered Ethan Brewster to that gold medal victory in the mixed doubles event at last year's Winter Youth Olympics in Korea, led regular teammates Holly Clemie and Alison Hamilton as well as Cara Thomson unbeaten through the event, before edging out Japan's Team Nakamura in a closely contested final at the European Junior Curling Tour (EJCT) event in Prague at the weekend, as they provided the latest evidence of how domestic women's curling is booming following Team GB's Olympic success in 2022.
"It was great to win our first European Junior Tour event," said Soutar. 
"We have worked hard over the pre-season and are delighted that our training is helping us achieve good results.
"The teams we played in Prague were all new opponents and it was an excellent opportunity to play against a strong field of teams.
"It was amazing to deliver a high standard of play and go undefeated throughout the tournament and its great confidence boost going into our Scottish Junior Championships next month to get this EJCT win."
The teenage quartet not only demonstrated their strength of character in the final, after coming back from conceding an early three to claim the title with a series of stolen ends, but in re-grouping ahead of the event after one of their regular team members Eva Hare was forced to withdraw due to illness.
"We had a different line up for the event, with Cara Thomson kindly stepping in and she worked well within the team. We enjoyed having her onboard," said Soutar.
One of a string of highly promising young skips who have emerged in the women's game since Team GB's gold medal win in Beijing in 2022 with Fay Henderson having led her team to victory at the World Junior Championships in 2023, while Tia Laurie, whose team won last month's EJCT event in Baden, had been part of the quartet that claimed victory in the mixed team event at the Winter Youth Olympics, Soutar is clearly aware of the way in which success can help breed success. 
"My biggest role model in sport is (Olympic gold medal winning skip) Eve Muirhead," she said.
"Eve has achieved so much success in curling but also has shown so much resilience and determination throughout her career, demonstrating the hard work required to achieve success.
"Curling is an excellent sport to play and I feel lucky to have always been encouraged to participate in all levels and in different formats of the game. Mixed doubles is a format I enjoy where males and females can showcase their skills together to achieve success and I think curling has lots of examples of young women doing well in sport, so I hope we can be an inspiration to other women to get involved and participate in sport."
#SheCanSheWill
