Canada is off to a winning start at the Winter Olympics.
Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant beat Czechia’s Julie Zelingrová and Vít Chabičovský 10-5 in the opening draw of mixed doubles curling on Wednesday at Milano Cortina 2026.
The actual shots didn’t produce the most drama at the arena.
In the first end, the lights briefly went out at Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium because of a power outage. Play resumed after about a five-minute delay at a facility originally built in 1955 to host opening and closing ceremonies and figure skating at the 1956 Olympics.
Then, in the third end, blood ended up on the ice after Peterman appeared to accidentally step on a bug. After a quick technical timeout during which Gallant cleaned it up, play resumed.
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Keep up with Olympic mixed doubles curling
The Milano Cortina 2026 mixed doubles curling event runs Feb. 4-10. Follow along with the scores, standings and schedule on Sportsnet.ca
The husband-and-wife team of Peterman and Gallant jumped out to a commanding 5-0 lead with a steal of two in the second end.
Peterman’s draw for two in the fourth put Canada up 7-3.
Czechia shook hands after seven ends. Mixed-doubles games are eight ends.
The Czechs finished 3-6 at last year’s worlds and are not considered top medal contenders.
Canada faces Norway and Italy, two expected medal threats, on Thursday.
The top four teams in the 10-team round-robin will advance to the semifinals.
Peterman and Gallant have made three appearances at the world mixed doubles championships, capturing silver in 2019 and finishing off the podium in 2022 and 2025.
