‘Perfect performance’: Team GB finally win first Beijing gold in women’s curling

They came, they curled, they conquered. And finally, after so much disappointment at these Winter Olympics, Team GB was finally able to celebrate its first gold medal. It came on the very last morning of these Games, courtesy of their women’s curling team, who thrashed Japan 10-4 in a display of ice-cold precision.

It also capped a remarkable comeback for Eve Muirhead’s team, who had initially struggled to qualify for these Games, battled Covid before a final qualifying tournament in December, and then needed a combination of results to go their way to sneak their way into the semi-finals.

But against Japan they grasped the initiative from the first end, scoring two, and then ruthlessly pressed their initiative home. The match was effectively settled at the end of the seventh end when Muirhead sent the sole Japanese stone in the circle flying to score four.

Two ends later victory was sealed with another two, and Britain had its first curling gold medal since Rhona Howie’s ‘Stone of Destiny’ at Salt Lake City in 2002.

“It’s definitely been a rollercoaster journey for the whole team,” admitted Muirhead. “For me it was a very tough summer with the pandemic, with lockdown, with not initially qualifying for the Olympics. There were days when I just wanted to throw my shoes in the cupboard and not take them out again.

“But we all came back, we had this new team put together, we then won the Europeans and then the Olympic qualifying tournament. There have been ups and downs, there has been a couple of positive tests, but here we are, five very healthy girls with gold medals round their necks.”

The result means that Muirhead finally has a gold medal at her fourth Olympics after returning from hip surgery, while Vicky Wright, Jen