CORTINA D’AMPEZZO — The stage is set for thrilling men’s curling semifinals at the Milan Cortina Olympics following intense round-robin competitions. Canada will face Norway in a highly anticipated rematch after Norway’s decisive 8-6 victory earlier today, while undefeated Switzerland prepares to challenge Britain in Thursday evening’s critical matches.
Canadian skip Brad Jacobs drew parallels to historical precedents, noting the situation evokes “deja vu from Sochi” referencing the 2014 Winter Games where Canada faced China consecutively in round-robin and semifinal matches before ultimately claiming gold. “We’re experienced with this, done this a lot,” Jacobs stated. “Hopefully, we can get off to a better start tonight.”
The Swiss team enters the semifinals with an unblemished record, their confidence buoyed by strong team cohesion. Skip Yannick Schwaller emphasized the positive dynamics within his squad: “I would say it’s just a very good atmosphere in our group right now. Everybody is buying into what we’re doing.” Schwaller credited their success partly to the strategic guidance of renowned Canadian curler Glenn Howard, who joined as coach.
Britain secured their semifinal position with a 5-4 record, advancing following Canada’s loss to Norway. Meanwhile, defending gold medalists Sweden have been eliminated from contention, and the United States team saw their semifinal hopes vanish with Canada’s defeat.
On the women’s side, Sweden and Switzerland have already clinched semifinal berths. Sweden leads with seven wins against two losses (to Korea and Canada), while Switzerland follows closely with six victories and two defeats (to Japan and Sweden). Three nations—Canada, Korea, and the United States—remain tied for third place with identical 5-3 records, setting up a dramatic final round-robin session Thursday afternoon to determine the remaining two semifinal spots.
The men’s semifinals commence at 7:05 PM local time Thursday, with medal matches scheduled throughout the weekend. The women’s semifinals will follow on Friday afternoon, culminating in gold medal contests on Sunday morning.