Great Britain remained perfect in mixed doubles curling at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, handing Team USA its first loss of the tournament with a 6–4 victory Saturday in Cortina d’Ampezzo. Gold-medal favorites Bruce Mouat and Jennifer Dodds showed resilience and precision down the stretch, scoring in the final three ends to secure the win and clinch a semifinal berth.
The Americans found themselves playing from behind early. Great Britain capitalized on a measurement in the opening end to score three, then benefited from another close call in the second end that limited Team USA to a single point and a 3–1 deficit. By the halfway break, the U.S. trailed 4–1, marking just the second time in the tournament they were behind after four ends.
Team USA responded with its strongest moment in the fifth end. With hammer, Korey Dropkin placed a key stone on the back of the button to set up a scoring opportunity. Great Britain’s final shot failed to remove the American stones, and Cory Thiesse delivered a precise hammer throw into the center of the house. After a measurement confirmed three points — just shy of four — the Americans tied the match 4–4 with three ends remaining.
Great Britain quickly regained control. In the sixth end, Dodds — who finished the match shooting 82 percent — attempted a double takeout but removed only one stone, which still allowed Team GB to score a single point and retake the lead. They followed with another point in the seventh end, even as the Americans deployed their power play. With Great Britain sitting two in scoring position, Thiesse narrowly missed a double takeout attempt, resulting in a steal that pushed the lead to 6–4.
The final end never materialized into a comeback opportunity for Team USA. Great Britain crowded the house with multiple stones protected behind a guard, forcing the Americans to concede before their final shot.
The difference in shot-making proved decisive. Great Britain recorded 10 takeouts compared to just three for the United States, while Thiesse shot 25 percent on takeout attempts in the loss.
With the victory, Great Britain improved to 7–0 and clinched a spot in Monday’s semifinals. Mouat and Dodds will return to the ice Sunday morning to face Switzerland after sitting out the next two sessions.
Despite the setback, Team USA remains firmly in contention and will look to rebound quickly when they face South Korea at 1:05 p.m. ET, the final winless team in the tournament.
