Canada's wheelchair curling team made history at the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympics by finishing round-robin play with a perfect 9-0 record, the first team to do so in the event's history. They secured the top seed with wins over the United States and South Korea on Thursday. The team now faces South Korea in Friday's semifinals.
At the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Canada's wheelchair curling mixed team demonstrated exceptional dominance during the round-robin stage of the Paralympic Games. Skipped by Mark Ideson, with third Jon Thurston, second Ina Forrest, lead Collinda Joseph, and alternate Gil Dash, the team clinched their semifinal berth early but continued their streak, defeating the United States 7-3 and South Korea 6-3 on Thursday to reach 9-0.
Earlier highlights included a 9-4 victory over world No. 1 China on Tuesday and a 6-5 win over Sweden that evening, sealed with the final throw. Against Norway on Sunday, Thurston's double takeout—removing two Norwegian stones while sparing Canada's—led to a six-point end and a 9-2 win, going viral with over a million views on social media. "(The gap) was only this wide," Forrest said, demonstrating the precision required.
The team's success stems from strong preparation and communication. "Resiliency and believe in each other has been the key," Thurston noted after the U.S. win. "We've trained a lot together." Ideson emphasized the pressure of preparation: "That's pretty special... But we still have work to do."
Canada has medaled in every Paralympic wheelchair curling event since 2006, winning gold in 2006, 2010, and 2014, and bronze in 2018 and 2022. Coached by Mick Lizmore, they boast high shot success rates, with Thurston at 78 percent on takeouts. In the semifinals, Canada meets fourth-place South Korea, while China faces Sweden. The bronze-medal game is Friday, with the gold-medal match on Saturday.
