Switzerland's women's curling team advanced to the gold medal match with a 7-4 victory over the United States in the semifinals at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. Sweden also progressed by beating Canada 6-3 in the other semifinal. The USA will face Canada for bronze on Saturday.
In the women's curling semifinals held on Friday in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Switzerland defeated the United States 7-4, securing their first Olympic final appearance in the event since 2006. Switzerland's vice-skip Alina Pätz delivered near-perfect performance, shooting 100 percent on draw shots, 98 percent on takeouts, and 99 percent on game shots. Her precision was crucial in the 10th end, where she removed the U.S. shot stone for two points to seal the win. The Swiss team, led by skip Silvana Tirinzoni, recorded 48 takeouts compared to the USA's 25, shooting 85 percent overall.
The U.S. team, skipped by Tabitha Peterson, shot 82 percent but struggled to score more than one point per end. They took one in the first, fifth, eighth, and ninth ends, while Switzerland scored two in the second and fourth, and one in the eighth. Peterson noted, "We're proud of how we battled back in the second half of that game. We definitely got outplayed in the first half, so we kind of had to itch and scratch to find any type of points." This marks the U.S. women's first semifinal appearance since 2002, though they have yet to win an Olympic medal in the sport.
In the other semifinal on Thursday, Sweden upset top-ranked Canada 6-3, guaranteeing their sixth straight Olympic medal. Anna Hasselborg's team tied 2-2 at halftime before stealing points in the sixth and seventh ends. Hasselborg said, "I woke up this morning and just told the girls, 'I really believe we're winning today.'" Canada skip Rachel Homan acknowledged, "Sweden played a great game and kudos to them."
The bronze medal match between the USA and Canada is set for Saturday at 8:05 a.m. ET, pitting teams that met earlier when the U.S. won 9-8 on February 13—their first Olympic victory over Canada. Switzerland and Sweden will compete for gold on Sunday at 5 a.m. ET. Tirinzoni reflected, "I've achieved way more than I ever could dream of, and this is just the top."
