By Kevin Snow, European curling writer
Two of the world’s best teams once again displayed their dominance last weekend at the 2025 RBC Dominion Securities Western Showdown in Swift Current, Sask. Scotland’s Team Mouat defeated Team Kleiter to claim the men’s title, while it was Team Tirinzoni of Switzerland edging out Team Ha for the women’s crown.
Mouat went 3-0 in the prelims, and advanced to the final with a 6-2 win over Team Retornaz in the qualifying round, a 7-3 quarterfinal victory over Team McEwen, and a decisive 7-0 thumping of Team Whyte in the semis.
Things were much tighter for Mouat in the championship game as Kleiter held a 4-3 lead after the fourth. Mouat tied it up with a single in the sixth and used a steal in the final end to lock down a hard-fought 5-4 victory.
“It wasn’t our best game, unfortunately, but we did enough to win the game at the end and make him play a really tough shot to win,” Mouat told reporters after the game. “It’s been a really good event for a lot of the teams here.”
On the women’s side, Tirinzoni also finished with an unblemished 3-0 record in round-robin play. Tirinzoni’s path to the final included a 6-4 defeat of Team Tabata in the qualifier, a 6-2 win over Canada’s Team MacMillan in the quarterfinals, and a 5-3 nailbiter over Team Kang in the semifinals, where they scored two in the final end to move on.
Just like the men’s final, Tirinzoni and Ha traded blows in the women’s title game, with the score tied 2-2 after the fourth. Tirinzoni added one in the sixth, and Ha responded with a single in the seventh.
Tirinzoni had the hammer in the final end and used a draw to the button on the final shot to claim the 4-3 win, becoming the event’s first two-time women’s champion.
“It was very close. You couldn’t make any mistakes and they would punish you for it,” Tirinzoni told reporters after the game. “Coming home with the hammer was a good feeling, but then they make you draw to the button for the win.”
Here’s a look at how the other European teams fared over the weekend:
MEN (overall record; playoff results)
Team Whyte (SCO) — 5-1; defeated Team Laycock 5-2 in qualifier; defeated Team Blandford 8-6 in quarterfinals; lost 7-0 to Team Mouat in semifinals.
Team Waddell (SCO) — 3-2; defeated Team Libbus 7-5 in qualifier; lost 7-5 to Team Kleiter in qualifier.
Team Retornaz (ITA) — 2-3; lost 6-2 to Team Mouat in qualifier; lost 6-1 to Team Koe in qualifier.
Team Brunner (SUI) — 2-3; defeated Team McDonald 7-5 in qualifier; lost 5-4 to Team Blandford in qualifier.
Team Ramsfjell (NOR) — 1-3; lost 6-4 to Team Koe in qualifier.
Team Hoesli (SUI) — 1-2; did not qualify for playoffs.
Team Klima (CZE) — 0-3; did not qualify for playoffs.
WOMEN (overall record; playoff results)
Team Wrana (SWE) — 5-1; defeated Team Schwaller 7-2 in qualifier; defeated Team Gray-Withers 8-3 in quarterfinals; lost 6-0 to Team Ha in semifinals.
Team Dupont (DEN) — 4-1; defeated Team Henderson 5-2 in qualifier; lost 5-3 to Team Kang in quarterfinals.
Team Xenia Schwaller (SUI) — 3-3; lost 7-2 to Team Wrana in qualifier; defeated Team Sturmay 6-2 in qualifier; lost 7-1 to Team Ha in quarterfinals.
Team Henderson (SCO) — 2-3; lost to Team Dupont 5-2 in qualifier; lost 5-3 to Team MacMillan in qualifier.
Team Constantini (ITA) — 1-2; did not qualify for playoffs.
