Team Canada is now at six wins and zero losses at the 2024 Women’s World Curling Championship in Sydney, Nova Scotia. However what they accomplished on Tuesday was simply extraordinary. Canada did not just beat one undefeated team, but two.
In the morning draw, Canada beat Italy 8-7 in 11 ends. They then beat Switzerland 8-5 in the evening. Italy and Switzerland had records of four wins and zero losses, and six wins and zero losses respectively prior to their games against Canada.
In Canada’s win over Italy, Canada had key steals in the fourth and seventh ends, as Italian skip Stefania Constantini was unable to remove a Canadian stone from the four foot on each occasion. In Canada’s win over Switzerland, the key end was the seventh end, as Canada put significant pressure on a Swiss team skipped by Silvana Tirinzoni. Third Tracy Fleury went through a very small port (two Swiss guards) for a takeout, and then Swiss fourth player Alena Paetz was unsuccessful in removing a Canadian stone with her first rock, which led to the big Canadian end.
To put Homan’s win over Switzerland into perspective, this was Switzerland’s first loss at the Women’s World Curling Championship since May 4, 2021 when Sweden’s Anna Hasselborg beat Tirinzoni 8-3 in Calgary, Alberta. Like Homan, Hasselborg had a four ender. Switzerland went undefeated at the 2022 and 2023 Women’s World Curling Championships. The Tirinzoni team had a 42-game winning streak during this time.
