Canada's Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant will kick off the nation's Winter Olympics campaign with a mixed doubles curling match against Czechia on Wednesday. The husband-and-wife duo earned their spot by winning the Olympic trials in January 2025. The event starts two days before the official opening ceremonies in Milano Cortina 2026.
The mixed doubles curling competition at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics begins on February 4 in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, marking the first sport to start before the opening ceremonies on Friday. Canada's representatives, Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant, face Czechia's Julie Zelingrová and Vít Chabičovský at 1:05 p.m. ET in the opening draw. The pair secured their berth with an 8-7 victory over Rachel Homan and Brendan Bottcher in the January 2025 Olympic trials final.
Peterman and Gallant, who teamed up at the 2016 Canadian mixed doubles championship, have a strong international record, including a silver medal at the 2019 world championships and appearances in 2022 and 2025. Their partnership began on the ice and evolved personally, with Gallant crediting the Olympics for their relationship. “It was obviously a great week on multiple fronts, right?” Gallant said recently. “So, really, we kind of have the Olympics to thank for the start of this.” Both competed in the 2022 Beijing Olympics: Gallant won bronze in the men's event with Team Brad Gushue, while Peterman missed medals on Jennifer Jones's team.
The 10-team field is highly competitive, with seven nations having podium finishes at world mixed doubles championships. Italy's Stefania Constantini and Amos Mosaner enter as favorites, holding the 2022 Olympic gold and 2025 world title, despite playing no mixed doubles games this season. Other contenders include Norway's Kristin Skaslien and Magnus Nedregotten, who have three world medals and two Olympic silvers since 2018; Great Britain's Jennifer Dodds and Bruce Mouat, 2025 world silver medalists; the United States' Cory Thiesse and Korey Dropkin, 2023 world champions; and Estonia's Marie Kaldvee and Harri Lill.
The event runs through February 10 at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, a renovated venue from the 1956 Games with over 3,000 seats. The intimate, noisy arena could challenge communication in the fast-paced mixed doubles format, where teams rely on quick adaptations. Gallant noted, “We have some hand signals. We know how to communicate nonverbally. We can be really loud when need be, too.” The opening draw also features a marquee matchup between Norway and Great Britain.
