By Kevin Snow
In a storied career highlighted by three Winter Olympics medals and seven World Championships, Sweden’s Niklas Edin continues to etch his name into the record books.
Despite losing 7-3 to Germany on Monday, the Swedish skip surpassed John Shuster of the United States for the most Olympic games played by any curler at 51 games. Edin said it’s a “fun record to have,” adding that “it’s a testament that we’ve done really well for a very long time.”
Unfortunately for the defending gold medallists, it’s likely going to be their lone highlight from the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games. Sweden closed play on Tuesday with a record of 2-6 and are in danger of finishing in last place. They conclude round-robin play on Thursday with Czechia in a game that could very well determine the 10th-place finisher.
“It’s not normal for us to miss the play-offs, and this is just nowhere near play-offs. We’re fighting not to be last in this event now,” Edin said on Tuesday following a 9-4 loss to Switzerland. “I don't know if we’re prepared for how to handle the situation. It feels empty, and hard to enjoy the other sports.”
These are the fourth Olympics for the 40-year-old Edin, and he’s reached the podium in each of his previous three trips. In addition to taking home gold in 2022, Edin claimed bronze in 2014 and a silver in 2018, making him the only skip in World Curling Federation history to win three Olympic medals.
"A real sh**storm" in Italy
Back in September at the Grand Slam of Curling’s AMJ Masters event in London, Ont., a confident Edin explained how their previous Olympic experiences would help them prepare for the season ahead.
“We’ve done this for two decades so it’s no problem at all. We know that it’s going to be in February and we’ve still got work to do. If we do what we have to until then, we’ll be in great shape.”
What followed was an unusually difficult season for the Swedes, highlighted by just one playoff game in five Grand Slam events. A resilient win at the European Championships in December appeared to jumpstart Team Edin’s season, but those hopes were dashed quickly upon arriving in Italy.
Sweden opened the Olympics with consecutive losses to Italy and Great Britain. But it was a controversial 8-6 loss to Canada in their third game that seemed to take the wind out of their sails.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, things got a little bit heated that day. Early in the match, Edin was seen on camera raising some concerns with officials. Not long afterwards, Sweden accused Canadian third Marc Kennedy of double-touching stones during delivery, prompting Kennedy to share his feelings with Sweden’s Oskar Eriksson using words that we are accustomed to hearing at a hockey rink, not on Olympic curling ice.
“We usually don’t ever have conflicts with any teams out there. We kind of agree with all the teams. But this time, obviously, it turned into a real sh**storm, and we haven't managed it,” explained Edin. “It would have been nice to just blank our minds and forget about it. But that was easier said than done. So, a little lack of sleep, a little lack of focus on the right things, and it turned into a horrible week.”
Edin isn’t backtracking on his views of how Canada was double-touching during delivery, saying “I guess (they) have practised that way and feel it's an okay way to throw the rock. And we don’t.”
Despite holding firm in his beliefs, Edin says he does regret addressing it during play and would likely do things differently if it were to arise again. That said, he knows he’s not alone in his assessment of the situation.
“Almost all the other teams here have thanked us for speaking up. It’s something that almost every team out there has thought about and talked about, but maybe not the way we did, not confronting someone in the heat of the moment.”
Is this Edin's swan song?
The team’s struggles this season and, in these Olympics, have left Edin with more questions than answers. Edin will look for his eighth title when he represents Sweden at the World Men’s Curling Championships in Utah next month. Following that he will team up with fellow Swede Anna Hasselborg on the Typhoon Curling Club when the inaugural season of the Rock League begins play in April.
Beyond that, does Edin have it in him to endure another four-year Olympic cycle to prepare for the 2030 Winter Olympics in France? He acknowledges the personal sacrifices that need to be made to compete at this level and has started to wonder if that option will be on the table moving forward.
“We’ll have a massive sit-down, talk through everything. It’s been a long run. Me and Oskar (Eriksson) have been on the same team for, I think, 17 years now,” Edin says. “It's not an easy decision for any of us, and obviously it’s a team decision, too. We’ve got to listen to everyone and see if it’s still fun to curl, to see if we still realistically think we have a chance four years from now.
“If not, then it might not be worth it.”
