Canada, who were mired in a cheating controversy earlier in the tournament, on Saturday beat the UK 9-6 in a tense final to win Olympic men’s curling gold for the fourth time.
Brad Jacobs’ team secured their country’s first title in the event since defeating Britain in the 2014 gold-medal match in Sochi.
The UK had to settle for a third silver medal in the past four Olympic men’s curling competitions after slipping up in the last two ends in Cortina d’Ampezzo.
Photo: Reuter
They are still waiting for a first men’s title since 1924, after which curling was absent from the Olympic program for 74 years.
The tournament was marred by controversy at the Milan-Cortina Games after Canadian Marc Kennedy insulted a Swedish opponent who had accused him of cheating.
The spat led to fears that curling was losing its once genteel image, while the Canadians faced criticism in their own national media.
Photo: Reuters
“For anyone who called us cheaters, for anyone who said negative things about Marc Kennedy, about us, about Canada, about our families, I hope that the image of us standing on top of the podium, embracing one another, smiling ear to ear with our gold medals is burned into your brain forever,” Jacobs said.
With its women’s team having won bronze earlier, it was Canada’s seventh gold and 14th medal overall in Olympic curling — tops in both categories.
Norwegian cross-country skier Johannes Klaebo won a groundbreaking sixth gold at the Games, while heavy snow forced China’s freestyle skiing superstar Eileen Gu to wait for her elusive first title in Italy.
Photo: AFP
Klaebo’s victory in the men’s 50km mass start event saw him clinch his 11th Winter Olympics gold medal, extending the record he set earlier in these Games.
The 29-year-old also became the first athlete to win all six cross-country skiing races in one Olympics.
The only athlete in Winter or Summer Games history with more Olympic golds is American swimmer Michael Phelps, who won 23.
Emily Harrop and Thibault Anselmet combined to win gold for France in the mixed relay event of ski mountaineering in Bormio.
Ski mountaineering made its Olympic debut at this year’s Games, and while the “skimo” sprints offered a condensed version of the sport, the mixed relay proved to be a true lung-busting race.
Harrop and Anselmet clocked a winning time of 26 minutes, 57.44 seconds in the relay, consisting of ascents on skis and sections on foot with skis attached to the backpack.
An hour later, France won their sixth gold medal in biathlon of this Games when Oceane Michelon took the glory in the women’s mass start event.
Biathlon accounts for six of France’s eight gold medals overall so far.
Meanwhile, Germany’s Laura Nolte was faultless in two women bobsled, taking gold with Deborah Levi for the second successive Olympics a week after losing out on the monobob title by four hundredths of a second with a final-run stumble.
Compatriot Lisa Buckwitz, a former champion as a brakewoman, took silver, ahead of Kaillie Humphries, who won the 2010 and 2014 golds for Canada, but now represents the US.
Nolte started the day 0.18 seconds ahead and virtually doubled that gap with a 57.26 opening run.
Taiwan’s Lin Sin-rong and Lin Song-en failed to qualify for the final heat after finishing 25th in the third heat, 5.58 seconds behind the leaders, Germany.
In a blockbuster end to the Olympics, tournament favorites Canada and the US were to face off for ice hockey gold last night after press time.
The US were targeting their first Olympic title since the 1980 “Miracle on Ice.”
Finland, the champions from Beijing in 2022, on Saturday thrashed Slovakia 6-1 to take the bronze medal.
Norway lead the medals table with 18 golds, while the US are second with 11.
Additional reporting by staff writer, with AP and Reuters
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