Oskar Eriksson of Team Sweden has continued to accuse Marc Kennedy of Team Canada of double-touching during their Olympic curling match, despite official rulings finding no violation. The incident, which led to a heated on-ice exchange, has drawn further scrutiny amid similar allegations in other games. Canada advances to the gold medal match against Great Britain.
The controversy erupted during the February 14 round-robin match between Sweden and Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina, where Canada secured an 8-6 victory. Swedish curler Oskar Eriksson, 34, accused Canadian skip Marc Kennedy, 44, of double-touching—touching the stone a second time after release—which is prohibited if it occurs after the hog line.
Eriksson confronted Kennedy on the ice, stating, “Apparently, it’s alright touching the rock after the hog line.” Kennedy responded sharply, “You can f–k off,” an outburst that earned him a verbal warning from World Curling for inappropriate language. Television replays appeared to show the infraction, but referees ruled no rules were broken, as a second touch after release is now permitted unless after the hog line, in which case the stone is removed.
Post-match, Eriksson told Swedish outlet Värmlands Folkblad, “You don’t react like that if you know you’re not guilty. I don’t think he slept as well that night as I did. If he now chooses to think he did the right thing, he will have to take responsibility for it.” He added, “He hasn’t dared to look in my direction. He’s probably ashamed. Mature for a 44-year-old father of two.”
Kennedy denied the accusations, claiming Sweden had premeditated the confrontation by installing cameras. “They have come up with a plan here at the Olympics... to catch teams in the act at the hog line,” he said. Canadian coach Paul Webster echoed this, accusing Sweden of unsportsmanlike filming of opponents. Eriksson countered, calling it hypocrisy, noting Kennedy had filmed others but objected when targeted.
The Swiss team also accused Canada of double-touching the following day. In women's curling, Canadian Rachel Homan had a stone removed for a similar infraction after umpires increased monitoring. Team Great Britain's Bobby Lammie faced a like ruling against Germany, with his stone removed.
World Curling clarified it does not use video replay for decisions. Canada is set to face Great Britain in the gold medal match.
