In a stunning upset at the 2026 Winter Olympics, Canada's Brett Gallant and Jocelyn Peterman defeated Italy's defending champions Stefania Constantini and Amos Mosaner 7-2, snapping the Italians' 23-match winning streak at major international events. The victory came in the second round-robin match for both teams at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium. Italy, playing on home ice, struggled with the conditions and conceded after seven ends.
The match on Thursday, February 5, 2026, marked the first loss for Constantini and Mosaner in Olympic or world championship play since they began partnering. The Italian duo, aged 26 and 30 respectively, had gone undefeated with 9-0 round-robin records and 2-0 in knockouts to claim gold at the 2022 Beijing Olympics and the 2025 World Championships. They extended their streak to 23 with a win in their Olympic opener on Wednesday against an unspecified opponent.
Canada, making their mixed doubles Olympic debut, dominated from the start. Gallant and Peterman, a husband-and-wife team from Chestermere, Alberta, opened with a five-point first end, highlighted by Peterman's impressive runback shot that cleared a guard stone. Italy responded with a single point in the second end but could only manage another in the fourth, despite employing their power play option to reposition stones favorably.
By the seventh end, Canada led 5-2. Peterman's double takeout prevented Italy from mounting a comeback, leading to a blank end where Constantini overthrew her shot. With the hammer switching to Canada for the eighth end, the Italians conceded. Canada shot 81% as a team, compared to Italy's 72%, with Mosaner noting difficulties reading the ice: "I didn't understand much about the ice. Too slow for me, but the ice is the same for everybody."
Gallant reflected on the challenge: "It’s just a tough event, so every game’s important. You’re playing against the reigning world champs, reigning Olympic champs, there’s only one kind of thing you have to do is play really well." Peterman added that silencing the home crowd early was satisfying. Italy now stands 1-1, in sixth place with seven round-robin games left; the top four advance to knockouts. Canada improves to 3-0, tied for first with Great Britain.
Both Constantini and Mosaner will compete in other curling events: she skips the women's team, he plays third on the men's. The round-robin continues through nine matches per team, with playoffs next week.
