Team GB Curling Pair Overcome Power Cuts and Delays for Winning Start
Team GB's Bruce Mouat and Jennifer Dodds made a dream start to their mixed doubles curling campaign at the Winter Olympics, defeating Norway 8-6 in their opening round robin match despite a partial power cut causing delays at the Cortina Curling Stadium.
Olympic Gremlins Strike Early
The technical issues began just five minutes into what should have been a serene opening night for Olympic organisers, with staff scrambling to fix the partial power failure that caused a short disruption to proceedings. This proved to be another logistical headache for officials, following confirmation that Milan's new ice hockey venue won't be fully complete before tomorrow's opening match, while a cable car designed to transport fans to women's alpine skiing events remains unfinished.
"I didn't mind the lights flicking on and off, it was like a dance and a boogie in a night club," Mouat remarked about the unexpected interruption. "We forgot quite quickly about it because we were so focussed on the game but these things happen. It is nothing new to us."
Childhood Friends Prevail in Tense Encounter
The childhood friends used every ounce of their experience to overcome Norway's Kristin Skaslien and Magnus Nedregotten - the married couple who had beaten them in the semi-finals at the previous Olympics in Beijing and were ranked third in the world. Dodds was particularly impressive throughout the tense encounter, delivering several crucial stones that swung momentum in Team GB's favour.
She weighted the last stone of the second end to perfection, nudging Norway's out of the way to secure three valuable points. Then, at the end of the fifth end with Norway holding the hammer and eyeing a three-point haul of their own, Dodds delivered a nerveless stone that settled on the button, limiting the damage to just one point for their opponents.
Atmosphere and Confidence Building
"The opening match was amazing," Mouat reflected. "There are people in the stands, which is pretty special after having nobody at the last Olympics because of Covid. It is nice to have an atmosphere and play with Jen at the Olympics, we grew up together and love to compete together."
Dodds described the victory as a significant confidence builder for the week ahead, labelling the contest "an arm-wrestle" and noting that "it was a very back and forth game." She explained: "It took us a wee minute to figure out which side of the ice was curling more than the other, and once we sorted that, we had much better control. That is when we took that step up in performance and went from there."
Quick-Fire Competition Continues
The 10-team mixed doubles competition moves at a rapid pace, with Mouat and Dodds scheduled to play more than half of their round robin matches before Friday's opening ceremony. They face Estonia at 9.05am on Thursday, followed by Czechia at 6.05pm UK time as they aim for a top-four finish that would secure a semi-final berth.
"This win is massive," Dodds added. "You always want to start with a really tough opponent to get the ball rolling and see where you are. We definitely played well but there are elements we want to improve on. We know what that is and what we need to sharpen up."
Looking ahead to their next opponents, she noted: "We have played Estonia a lot this season and they are a great team but we are going to have to play a lot better than that to beat them."
