Winter Olympics 2026: Bruce Mouat’s Team GB beat Switzerland in thriller to reach men’s curling final
Updated 19/02/2026 at 22:05 GMT
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Great Britain's rink, led by Bruce Mouat, overcame Switzerland in a tense but thrilling semi-final at the Milano Cortina Olympic Winter Games to set up a showdown with Canada on Saturday evening, live on TNT Sports and discovery+. Team GB had relied upon results elsewhere earlier on Thursday to emerge from the round-robin stage but they are now one victory away from securing the gold medal.
Glorious celebrations as Team GB seal place in curling final
Video credit: TNT Sports
Team GB’s bid for glory in the men’s curling at the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic Winter Games is on track following a tense but thrilling semi-final victory over Switzerland.
Bruce Mouat’s rink scraped into the last four, but they upped their game in taking out the Swiss, who went unbeaten through the round-robin stage.
After settling for the silver medal at the Beijing Games four years ago, they have the chance to become world and Olympic champions in the battle for gold on Saturday night against Canada, from 18:05 UK time - live on TNT Sports and discovery+.
Their semi began in peculiar fashion when Yannick Schwaller tumbled on the ice after tripping over Grant Hardie’s brush. The incident occurred during a blank opening end before Switzerland took the early advantage when Benoit Schwarz-van Berkel secured the first two points of the encounter.
Switzerland's strong start hardly came as a surprise considering their 100% winning run in the competition to that point but Team GB stuck with them. The British rink forced Switzerland into a tricky situation in the third end, but the Swiss managed to limit Team GB to two points, which saw the world champions pull level.
Mouat, who has been in excellent form, threw a loose stone with his final draw in the fourth end, which allowed Switzerland to restore their two-point lead for 4-2. More sloppiness followed in the fifth end as GB’s final stone clipped the guard, which meant they were only able to halve Switzerland’s deficit at the halfway stage.
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British curlers determined to make amends for 'four years of hurt'
Video credit: TNT Sports
But Britain came out swinging in the second half as Mouat executed a brilliant shot while Switzerland chased three, securing a steal to level matters once more.
A handy shot from the Swiss in the seventh end left them lying three and Mouat followed up with a risky shot in a bid to wipe them all out, and it paid off. He restricted the opponents to a single point when they could have taken a big step towards victory, and it completely shifted the momentum in Britain’s favour.
Team GB led for the first time when they took two in the eighth end, setting up a tense finish at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium. There was nothing to separate them in the penultimate end and the 10th was a tense one. But Britain finally had the Swiss beaten in a sensational finish which saw Switzerland, with the hammer, overhit their final throw to gift Mouat’s side two points and the victory.
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It had been a long night and day for Team GB, who faced an anxious wait to see if they had done enough in the round-robin stage to qualify for the semi-finals.
They defeated the United States in their final qualification game earlier on Thursday in a routine 9-2 victory, but their progression depended on results elsewhere.
They needed Italy or Norway to lose on Thursday afternoon in their final matches after Switzerland and Canada made sure of the top two positions.
Fortunately for Mouat’s rink, Italy were beaten by Switzerland - who won all nine of their round-robin matches - as Team GB finished fourth, while Norway progressed in third.
Mouat and his team-mates will face Canada in the final on Saturday, live on TNT Sports and discovery+, after they edged the other semi-final 5-4 after an extra end.
Watch every event of Milano Cortina 2026 live on discovery+. Available across all subscription plans, starting at £3.99.
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