John Landsteiner, the longtime lead for skip John Shuster and 2018 Olympic gold medallist, is stepping away from competitive curling.
The 35-year-old from Duluth, Minn., made the announcement Wednesday in a Facebook post.
"As life has progressed during this quad, with the addition of my two young children and my ongoing full-time career as an engineer with Lake Superior Consulting, it has become clear to me that time spent with my family means more than the grind that the run to 2026 will require," Landsteiner wrote in the post.
Landsteiner joined Shuster in 2011 and won six national championships, but it was the team's unbelievable run to the top of the podium at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang that captivated not only the curling community but the sporting world, too, with the "Miracurl on Ice."
Shuster, Landsteiner, second Matt Hamilton and third Tyler George — who came together outside of the USA Curling program — got off to a shaky start in the tournament with a 2-4 record. The team won five consecutive games, including a 10-7 victory over Niklas Edin's Swedish squad, to capture the first-ever gold medal for the U.S. in curling.
Landsteiner also competed for the U.S. with Team Shuster at the Olympics in 2014 and in 2022.
He earned bronze medals at the 2016 World Men's Curling Championship and 2024 Pan Continental Curling Championships.
Although Landsteiner is saying farewell to the tour, don't be surprised if he shows up at the local club with a broom in hand.
"To be clear, this is not a goodbye to the sport of curling for me," Landsteiner said. "I will continue to participate in my usual leagues and will likely hit up some regional bonspiels with old pals, and most importantly, teach and watch my children grow up with the game. Heck, maybe they’ll even let me coach them."
