Paralympic wake-up call: Last-shot win helps Canada to wheelchair curling semifinals

Canada's wheelchair curling team will play for a medal at the Beijing Paralympics.

It took the final rock in the last of the 10 round robin matches, but the Canadian squad was able to secure a semifinal berth by defeating Norway 7-6 on Thursday.

The Norwegian side had a 6-4 lead heading to Canada's last throw of the match. But fourth Jon Thurston, of Dunsford, Ont., kept cool, calm and collected to remove the lone opposition rock from the board while adding one of Canada's for a three-point eighth end.

Canada, led by skip Mark Ideson, would have made it to the semifinals either way, given the results of the later draw. By downing Norway and securing a 7-3 preliminary-round record, however, they kept control of their own destiny and moved to the playoffs on a three-match winning streak.

Now, at the very least, Ideson, third Ina Forrest, who served as Canada's co-flag-bearer in the opening ceremony, and second Dennis Thiessen will have an opportunity to defend the country's PyeongChang 2018 bronze medal.

Since then, alternate Collinda Joseph and Thurston replaced 2018 team members Marie Wright and alternate James Anseeuw in the national team.

WATCH l Canada downs Norway in wheelchair curling to punch semifinal ticket:

Canada started and ended its round robin campaign on a high.

They captured four wins in a row at the start, downing defending champion China, Switzerland, Latvia and the United States. The last three games saw the Canadians edge Great Britain, Estonia and Norway.

In between the positive runs, Canada was defeated by Sweden, South Korea and Slovakia.

China (7-2), Sweden (7-2) and Slovakia (6-3) have also already secured playoff spots, with one match to spare. Both semifinals are set for Friday at 1:35 a.m. ET,