US, Shuster to play for a medal at World Men’s Curling Championship
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- The United States’ John Shuster looks on during a game against Switzerland at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship at the Weber County Ice Sheet in Ogden on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
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- The United States’ Christopher Plys, left, and Matt Hamilton, right, shake hands with Switzerland’s Philipp Hoesli, left, and Simon Gloor, right, after their game at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship at the Weber County Ice Sheet in Ogden on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
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- The United States’ Christopher Plys delivers the curling stone during a game against Switzerland at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship at the Weber County Ice Sheet in Ogden on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
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- The United States’ Colin Hufman delivers the curling stone during a game against Switzerland at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship at the Weber County Ice Sheet in Ogden on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
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- The United States’ Matt Hamilton prepares to deliver the curling stone during a game against Switzerland at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship at the Weber County Ice Sheet in Ogden on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
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- Switzerland’s Justin Hausherr, left, and Simon Gloor, right, sweep the curling stone during a game against the United States at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship at the Weber County Ice Sheet in Ogden on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
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- Switzerland’s Simon Gloor, left, and Philipp Hoesli, left, discuss their next play during a game against the United States at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship at the Weber County Ice Sheet in Ogden on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
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- The United States’ Colin Hufman, left, and Matt Hamilton, right, sweep the curling stone during a game against Switzerland at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship at the Weber County Ice Sheet in Ogden on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
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- The United States’ Matt Hamilton, left, and Colin Hufman, right, sweep the curling stone during a game against Switzerland at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship at the Weber County Ice Sheet in Ogden on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
OGDEN — The United States led by skip John Shuster will be playing for a medal Saturday at the 2026 World Men’s Curling Championship after stealing the extra-end victory in Friday’s qualification quarterfinal against Switzerland and skip Marco Hoesli.
Semifinal games scheduled for Friday afternoon will determine which of four teams advance to the Saturday afternoon’s gold-medal game at the Weber County Ice Sheet. The United States will play Sweden and Niklas Edin, while Canada and Matt Dunstone will face off against Scotland and Ross Whyte.
The losers of the semifinal games, which will conclude after the Standard-Examiner’s Friday press deadline, will play in the bronze-medal game Saturday morning.
After the game, Shuster said teams aim to be medal contenders when they play in a world championship.
“All of us wanted to put our best foot forward and see if we couldn’t get a world championship that’s eluded all of us for our entire careers,” Shuster said of the U.S. team. “We’ve been on teams that we’ve all felt have been good enough to do that, but this is by far the best team I’ve ever played on at a world championship and it’s fun to be in this position.”
Getting to that position required defeating a strong Swiss team that defeated the United States 9-5 in the last game of round-robin play Thursday night. That game had been tied at 4 after eight ends, but a couple of U.S. errors allowed the Swiss to score 4 in the ninth end to put the game away.
Friday’s rematch was a similarly well-matched affair with both teams aggressively putting rocks into play in the opening five ends.
The U.S. ran into trouble in the sixth end when the game was tied at 3-all and the Swiss with the hammer.
When it was time for Shuster and Swiss fourth Philipp Hoesli, Marco’s brother, to take their first shots, the Swiss were sitting two near the back of the 12-foot ring. Shuster crashed on a guard with his first shot and Philipp Hoesli put a third Swiss rock in the top 12-foot.
After Shuster took out one of the Swiss counters in the back, Philipp Hoesli secured three points for Switzerland with a draw to the back eight-foot.
The U.S. responded by scoring 2 points in the seventh end and then stealing 2 more in the eighth after Philipp Hoesli tried to hit the inside of a guard and roll off it toward the button but came up short.
Switzerland got 2 points and the lead back in the ninth end.
With the hammer in the 10th end and down 8-7, Shuster looked for ways to set up a multiple-point score but Switzerland cleared out or pushed back the U.S. rocks. Shuster nailed a draw to the button to force the extra end.
Seeking to steal the win in the extra end, U.S. lead Matt Hamilton put up two center guards. Switzerland responded by putting two of their rocks in the top four-foot ring.
The Swiss worked to clear guards, and the U.S. replaced them until fourths’ stones.
With his first shot without hammer, Shuster drew to tap the Swiss shot back slightly creating enough space for the U.S. to sit mostly corner frozen in the top button.
Philipp Hoesli tried to chip a red rock from the top four-foot on to the shot U.S. rock, but his shot overcurled.
After a timeout, Shuster opted to double out the two remaining red Swiss rocks in the rings to lay three. After frantic sweep call, the U.S. made the shot as the audience erupted into cheers and applause.
Switzerland took its timeout as the team looked at the three counting U.S. stones — one on the button protected by two center stones above the four-foot.
Philipp Hoesli was able to double out two of the U.S. rocks with the hammer, but the shooter rolled wide and left U.S. sitting shot just above the four-foot on the center line. U.S. scored one and the win.
After the game, Shuster noted that the Stars and Stripes never gave up despite trailing early in the game.
“It took a few incredible shots, team shots along the way,” he said. “It’s good to get one like that.”
Canada 9, Italy 7
In the other qualification quarterfinal, Canada emerged as the winner in a battle of skips new to the world championships. Italy and skip Stefano Spiller jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the third end and held it until the 10th end when it was still up 7-6.
In the final end, Italy, without hammer, was sitting shot on the top button behind a chain of six Canadian and Italian stones stretching into the guard zone.
After Canadian skip Matt Dunstone drew to the edge of the button to sit second shot, Spiller tapped it back and rolled wide to the edge of the four-foot circle.
With the hammer, Dunstone hit off the inside of the just-placed Italian stone and rolled back to take out the buried Italian shot stone. The double takeout left three counting Canadian rocks to score the 9-7 victory.
With the win, Canada set up a rematch with Scotland, which had a bye into the Friday afternoon semifinal. Scotland won the initial contest 8-3 on the second day of the 12-game round robin.
The winner of the Canada-Scotland game will vie for gold against the winner of the Sweden-United States contest. The loser will play for bronze.
Norway relegated
Norway played feisty through the entire tournament including pushing Canada and the United States to an extra end, but was unable to secure a win. As a result, Norway will be relegated to the new world championship qualifier.
The qualifier is part of a major revamp of the curling world championships beginning next season. The men’s and women’s championships will feature a field of 18 teams apiece with two pools of nine, according to World Curling.
Based on competition results, the bottom four teams will be relegated from the championship to a qualifier featuring 16 men’s and 16 women’s teams. The four men’s and four women’s teams who finish at the top of the standings at the qualifier will be promoted to their respective championship, while the four men’s and women’s teams who finish at the bottom of the standings will be relegated to either the European or the Pan-Continental pre-qualifiers.
Next season’s Pan-Continental pre-qualifier is set to begin April 13 in Dumfries, Scotland.
‘Make the final’
Many curling fans from around the world view the broadcasts from Canada’s TSN as among the best. For 40 years, the broadcasts have been defined by the play-by-play commentary of Vic Rauter, who is known for phrases such as “Count ’em up” following a big end or “Make the final” with the score at the end of a game.
Saturday will be the last opportunity for Canadian viewers to hear those phrases as Rauter is retiring following the gold-medal game, according to TSN. That specific broadcast will be limited to Canadian audiences, but the Curling Canada YouTube channel has many archived games featuring Rauter’s broadcast call.
The TSN story noted that Rauter begin his curling broadcasting career at the 1986 Canadian Mixed Curling Championship in Kamloops, British Columbia. He had considered retiring in recent years and decided now was the time as he is turning 72 in May.
“I am a spiritual guy,” Rauter said to TSN. “I’m a blessed guy with a wonderful wife. And now it’s time for us to enjoy what 53 years of work has given me.”
