South Korea edged the United States in a tightly contested mixed doubles curling matchup at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, earning a 6–5 extra-end victory on Saturday and handing the Americans their second straight loss in competition.
Despite solid defensive play that never allowed South Korea to score more than a single point in any end, Team USA struggled to produce offense when opportunities arose. South Korea seized early momentum, scoring one point in the first end and stealing another in the second to take a 2–0 lead.
The Americans found themselves chasing the game throughout. In the third end, a missed double-takeout attempt by the U.S. allowed South Korea to add another point and extend the lead to 3–1. The pattern continued in the fifth end when the U.S., holding the hammer and sitting one stone on the button surrounded by four South Korean stones, managed to score only a single point instead of a potential multi-point end.
The decisive stretch came late in regulation. After deploying their power play in the seventh end, the Americans missed takeout attempts on both their penultimate and final stones. Both shots rolled completely out of the house, turning what could have been a momentum-shifting end into a stolen point for South Korea and a 5–2 deficit for the U.S. heading into the final end. The misses drew visible frustration from American curler Cory Thiesse.
Team USA responded with resilience in the eighth end, scoring three points to tie the match at 5–5, though they narrowly missed a chance to score four and secure the win in regulation.
In the extra end, South Korea held the hammer advantage. With the house clear, the Korean team calmly delivered a final stone to the button to score the winning point and seal the 6–5 victory. South Korea also held a statistical edge, outshooting the United States 86% to 79%.
The result marked South Korea’s first win of the tournament, improving its record to 1–5, while the United States dropped to 4–2, falling from the top of the standings into a tie with Italy for second place.
Team USA will look to rebound when it faces Estonia at 8:35 a.m. ET on Sunday, while South Korea will also take on Estonia earlier in the day at 4:05 a.m. ET.
