Canada’s Lawes & Morris win mixed doubles curling gold
Canada has captured the gold medal in the inaugural Winter Olympics mixed doubles tournament in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
The team of Kaitlyn Lawes and John Morris defeated Switzerland’s Jenny Perret and Martin Rios 10-3 in Tuesday’s final.
Lawes and Morris are now two-time Olympic gold medallist in curling with both winning in the traditional four-player game. Morris was victorious on home ice at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games playing third for Kevin Martin while Lawes claimed her medal four years later at third with Jennifer Jones in Sochi, Russia.
Canada opened with the hammer and converted for a deuce. Switzerland had a shot for three in the second but let it off the hook as Perret was unable to tap Canada’s rock back far enough and settled for a pair to tie it 2-2.
That was as close as it would get for Switzerland as they struggled in the third and Canada built a big end to score four points.
Perret and Rios, the reigning world mixed doubles curling champions, called their power play early but were unable to capitalize and were forced to just a single in the fourth.
Canada tacked two more on the board in the fifth and stole a couple in the sixth to bring out the handshakes.
Lawes, from Winnipeg, and Morris, who lives in Canmore, Alta., sustained their lone defeat at the start of the week to Norway before winning eight straight en route to gold.
Morris originally teamed in mixed doubles with Rachel Homan, who had to drop out of the trials after her women’s team qualified for the Winter Games. Lawes, who had played mixed doubles with Marc Kennedy and Ryan Fry, happened to be a free agent and Morris made the call. They won the Canadian mixed doubles trials in early January.