Team Muirhead end drought to win World Champioship bronze
EVE MUIRHEAD completed a full set of World Championship medals and her team secured their places at next year’s Winter Olympics when they beat Sweden 6-4 to claim bronze in Beijing yesterday.
It was their first medal success at the World Championships since, along with current team-mates Anna Sloan and Vicki Adams, Muirhead claimed gold in 2013.
“We came out fighting because we really wanted it. It’s been a tough week, so to come away with a medal is really satisfying,” said Muirhead.
“We knew Sweden would be tough but we were gutsy in our determination to get the win and stealing in the last two ends was a demonstration of that. We are so proud to bring a medal back to Scotland.”
The Scots had already guaranteed curling involvement for Team GB at next year’s Winter Olympics by reaching the play-offs. But this victory has guaranteed their own involvement in Pyeongchang on the basis of the criteria laid out by performance director Graeme Thompson.
After last month’s Scottish Championships Thompson said that, if a team won medals at both the European and World Championships this season and was highest placed in the world rankings, they would have earned the right to go.
Team Muirhead have been perennial medallists at the Europeans for the last seven seasons, collecting another bronze on home ice in Braehead back in November, while their fifth-place ranking puts them well ahead of their closest domestic rivals.
The way they claimed their medal was a powerful indicator they are on course to perform well in Korea, too.
The team’s tactical coach, four-time world champion Glenn Howard was full of praise for the way they handled the pressure against Anna Hasselborg’s Swedes, who had beaten them in the round-robin stages and in the first round of play-off matches, so denying the Scots a crack at the gold medal.
“From our perspective the last seven ends were the best seven ends we have played this year. Everything came together from team dynamics to communication, to rock placement and execution. It was a pleasure to watch,” he said.
Muirhead’s brilliant draw with her final stone of the ninth end earned the steal that put them in front for the first time in two matches against the Swedes. But Howard was even more pleased with the way they collectively closed it out.
“The first two or three ends were really tough but we made a ton of good curling shots in those next seven ends. The tenth end was point-perfect by every player all the way through and then good things happen.”
Howard’s native Canada won their first gold medal at these championships for nine years after Rachel Homan’s rink beat the Russians, led by Anna Sidorova, 8-3 in the final to maintain their tournament-long 100 per cent record
However, as well as beating the Swedes at the third time of asking, the Scots defeated the Russians earlier in the event and, while he indicated there remains scope for improvement, Howard suggested the return to medalwinning form was perfectly timed.
“To come away with a medal is absolutely fantastic,” he said.
“Obviously we had our ups and downs this week. We weren’t really at our best, but they showed mental fortitude and obviously the desire, came out in this game and really wanted it and to see the tears at the end was pretty special.”
Finishing on an up was also a perfect way to complete the on-ice initiation of Lauren Gray, who was the team’s alternate when they won gold in 2013 and when they claimed bronze at the Olympics, but was brought into the playing line-up as lead this season.
“It’s a completely different experience to being on the bench where you probably have more nerves because you can’t influence what is going on,” she admitted afterwards.
“I had to put all the new things I have learned into practice and it was very tight but we did it and I was just overjoyed and emotional and everyone was quite emotional to clinch it at the end.”