Shannon Birchard on her game, leading Canada to 3rd straight win at women's curling worlds

Unsure a year ago whether her knee would let her curl again at a high level, representing Canada in another world championship feels sweet for Shannon Birchard.

Canada's second posted 100 per cent shooting accuracy in Kerri Einarson's 9-3 win over China on Sunday at Calgary's WinSport Event Centre.

Birchard's hit and roll to the button, with sweeping help from teammate Karlee Burgess, set up a pivotal three points in the fifth end for a 6-2 lead.

Canada improved to 3-0 and finished off the opposition quickly for a second game in a row.

China's Rui Wang shook hands after eight ends. The United States also conceded after eight the previous evening in Canada's 11-3 victory.

"It's just huge to build some momentum," Birchard said. "We're a team that sometimes gets our back against the wall early, and it's not fun to play that way. It's nice to get these wins under our belts and just feel the confidence."

Canada takes on Denmark's Madeleine Dupont on Monday afternoon in the 13-country event.

The top six teams at the end of pool play advance to playoffs. The top two get an express ticket to Saturday's semifinals. The medal games are Sunday.

Japan joined Canada at 3-0 on Sunday with a 10-9 win in an extra end over Norway (0-3). Turkey got to 2-0 with a 5-3 victory over Scotland. Sweden (2-1) was a 9-4 winner over Italy (0-2).

Australia, Denmark, South Korea and Switzerland were all 1-1 heading into the evening draw. China dropped to 1-2 and the U.S. was 0-2.

Birchard, a six-time Canadian champion, sat out the majority of 2024-25 with a knee injury. She tested her knee at an October training camp that season. It didn't go well.

"Last year seems like a blur and it seems so far away, but when I put myself back to a year