The Court of Arbitration for Sport has dismissed an appeal by Italian curler Angela Romei seeking to overturn her exclusion from the women's team for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. The decision stems from allegations of favouritism in replacing her with the daughter of the national team's technical director. The ruling upholds the Italian Ice Sports Federation's selection process.
In Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, on February 8, 2026, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejected Italian curler Angela Romei's challenge to her removal from the Italy women's curling team for the upcoming Milano Cortina Winter Olympics. Romei, a experienced player, was replaced by 19-year-old Rebecca Mariani, the daughter of Marco Mariani, the national team's technical director. This substitution sparked claims of favouritism within the Italian Ice Sports Federation.
A CAS hearing occurred on February 7, where the sole arbitrator determined it was improbable that the head coach would select an athlete solely to favor a federation member's family inclusion in the Olympic roster. The statement noted: "They found it equally unlikely that he would endorse false or fabricated statements to justify such a decision."
Romei also appealed to World Curling (WCF), the sport's governing body, but CAS ruled that WCF lacks authority over national team selections. The panel confirmed: "The sole arbitrator found that WCF does not hold the decision-making authority to grant Ms Romei's request and confirmed that it is not the task of international federations to revisit the selection process at national level."
The Italian Ice Sports Federation maintained that Mariani's inclusion was a technical decision, as reported to Reuters. With the women's curling tournament set to begin next week in Cortina d'Ampezzo, the five-member Italy squad, including Mariani, proceeds to the Games without further disruption from the appeal.
