Cory Thiesse and Korey Dropkin of Team USA defeated defending champions Stefania Constantini and Amos Mosaner of Italy 9-8 in a thrilling semifinal match at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. The victory secures the first Olympic medal for a U.S. mixed doubles curling team and advances them to Tuesday's gold-medal game against Sweden. Thiesse's clutch final shot sealed the win after a back-and-forth battle.
The semifinal at Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, began with Italy taking an early 2-0 lead in the first end, leveraging their hammer advantage from an earlier 7-6 round-robin win over the U.S. that same day. Team USA responded quickly, tying the score at 2-2 in the second end and then stealing the lead with three points in the fourth end after Thiesse's precise draw shot, making it 5-4 at halftime.
Italy tied it at 5-5 in the fifth end with a strong shot from Constantini, but the Americans pulled ahead again to 7-5 in the sixth through strategic play. The seventh end saw Italy use their power play to score three points and take an 8-7 lead, setting up a tense final end amid chants of 'Italia' from the home crowd.
With the hammer and power play in the eighth end, Dropkin cleared two Italian stones, leaving Thiesse with a hit-and-stick opportunity. Her shot knocked out Italy's closest stone and secured two points for the 9-8 victory. 'I was definitely a little jittery before I threw it, but it's a shot I've visualized in my head a million times,' Thiesse said. Dropkin added, 'I trust and believe in her to make anything in front of her.'
Constantini acknowledged the loss gracefully: 'They deserved the win. We gave them too many chances, and they took them.' This marks the first time a U.S. mixed doubles pair has reached the medal round since the event's Olympic debut in 2018. Thiesse and Dropkin, 2023 world champions from Duluth, Minnesota, previously beat Sweden 8-7 in round-robin play. Sweden advanced by defeating top-seeded Great Britain 9-3, with siblings Isabella and Rasmus Wranå scoring five in the sixth end.
The gold-medal match is set for February 10 at 12:05 p.m. ET, while Italy faces Great Britain for bronze at 8:05 a.m. ET. Regardless of the outcome, Thiesse will be the first American woman to medal in Olympic curling.
