On This Day in Olympic Curling History

Following the mixed doubles medal bronze and gold medal games, the team (fours) curling competition kicked off with draw one of men’s play at the Ice Cube.

Canada’s Brad Gushue defeated Denmark’s Mikkel Krause 10-5 while Switzerland’s Peter de Cruz lost 7-4 to Norway’s Steffen Walstad.

In addition, defending champion John Shuster of USA came back from a 3-1 deficit to defeat Sergey Glukhov of ROC (Russian Olympic Committee) 6-5, and Sweden’s Niklas Edin, seeking his third straight Olympic medal, defeated the host nation skipped by veteran Ma Xiuyue by a 6-4 count.

PYEONGCHANG 2018

Sessions 2 and 3 of mixed doubles saw most favourites win their games. A battle of MD “specialist” pairings saw Norway defeat Switzerland 6-5.<

That evening, Niklas Edin carried the Swedish flag at the opening ceremony.

SOCHI 2014

Practice day 2 was completed, with men’s and women’s fours scheduled to begin the following day.

NAGANO 1998

Competition commenced at the Kazakoshi Ice Park in Karuizawa, less than 100 kilometres southwest of Nagano.

Curling at Nagano 1998 marked the return of the sport to the official Olympic event calendar, after demonstration events at Calgary 1988 and Albertville 1992.

The athletes in Japan believed they were competing in the first-ever official Olympic curling competition.

However, just prior to Torino 2006, the International Olympic Committee retroactively declared the curling competition at Chamonix in 1924 to be the first-ever official curling debut.

On the ice in Karuizawa, eight teams began competing in both men’s and women’s team play.

Canada’s Sandra Schmirler led USA’s Lisa Schoeneberg 7-2 after five ends and hung on for a 7-6 victory, before losing her evening match 6-5 to Norway’s Dordi Nordby.

Sweden’s Elisabet Gustafson won twice, over Norway and USA as did Denmark’s Helena Blach-Lavrsen, who was a 6-5 winner over Germany’s Andrew Schoepp and Great Britain’s Kirsty Hay.

Japan’s Mayumi Ohkutsu dropped both matches, to GBR and GER.

In the men’s opening draw, Switzerland’s Patrick Huerlimann stole three in the final end to post a 7-4 win over Germany’s Andy Kapp, and Great Britain’s Douglas Dryburgh upset three-time world champion and 1988 demonstration gold medallist Eigil Ramsfjell of Norway 4-2.

Meanwhile, Canada’s unheralded Mike Harris of Toronto dispatched youthful Makato Tsuruga of the host nation by a 7-4 count, and Peja Lindholm, the three-time and defending world champion from Sweden, upended USA’s Tim Somerville 6-2.