Canada sits on top of Mixed Doubles Curling event

Canada’s Kaitlyn Lawes throws the stone during the curling mixed doubles round robin session between Canada and Norway during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Gangneung Curling Centre in Gangneung on February 8, 2018. 
WANG Zhao / AFP

(Eagle News)  – After six rounds of play, Canada sits on top of the Curling standings after day three of round robin match play with five wins and their only loss coming from 2nd placed team Norway. Canada’s team is composed of John Morris and Kaitlyn Lawes, both Olympic Gold Medalists from Vancouver and Sochi, respectively. Trailing Canada is Norway, OAR, and reigning Mixed Doubles World Champions Switzerland who are all tied for 2nd. Team USA sits tied for 6th with two wins. Eight teams are currently competing in Round Robin with the top 4 teams advancing after Sunday’s matches. The Gold Medal match will take place on Tuesday.

Mixed Doubles Curling makes its debut at this year’s Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang, South Korea. Each team is comprised of two players, rather than the usual four of the same gender. Mixed Doubles is a much faster paced version of team curling, with each team throwing five stones each with two stones already placed in play. Each match is eight ends in length and requires a lot of strategy and athleticism.

Current Standings after six matches

1. Canada 5-1 – Qualified for Semifinal
2. Norway 4-2
2. Olympic Athlete of Russia 4-2 – Qualified for Semifinal
2. Switzerland 4-2
5. People’s Republic of China 3-3
6. Korea 2-4
6. United States 2-4
7. Finland 0-6

(Eagle News Service with reports from Kit Maglunog)