A controversial call by a curling official has ignited a firestorm at the 2026 Winter Olympics, as Canada’s Rachel Homan and her team suffered their third defeat in four matches, falling 8-7 to Switzerland in an extra end on Saturday. The loss came after a stone was removed from play because the official judged Homan had touched it after releasing it – a call Homan vehemently disputed.
“It’s outrageous,” Homan said after the match, according to Reuters. “I don’t understand this decision. I’ll never understand it. We never do that. It shouldn’t be up to the official to interfere with our game. There are no violations in women’s curling. It’s absurd.” Homan added that she believed the official’s view from the side of the rink was obstructed and a video review should have been conducted. “My hand didn’t move when I released it. I have no idea what they saw. If they saw something, they should appear at the video. Look at it a thousand times. They won’t see anything. It’s frustrating.”
The incident occurred during the first end of the match against Switzerland, according to reporting from the Associated Press. Homan and her team appeared “incredulous and angry” following the call. “Zero percent chance,” Homan reportedly said before play resumed.
The ruling comes on the heels of accusations of cheating leveled against the Canadian men’s curling team by Sweden on Friday, prompting a heated exchange and profanity-laced outbursts in the arena. In response, the World Curling Federation announced that officials would be stationed alongside the hog line – the line players must release the stone before – to monitor for rule violations during subsequent Olympic matches.
Silvana Tirinzoni, the skip for the Swiss team, stated she did not witness the alleged infraction. “I don’t know if she did it. But that was the official’s decision, and we had no choice but to remove the stone from play. That was the official’s instruction,” Tirinzoni said. “As far as I know, it’s always been a rule, but there was a lot of discussion about it yesterday. Today they were watching more closely, and it seems they saw her touch the granite. I don’t know if that’s true or not.”
Prior to the Olympics, both the Canadian and Swiss women’s teams were considered medal contenders, having met in the finals of the past two World Championships, with Homan’s Canadian team emerging victorious both times. Following four matches, Canada now sits in eighth place in the ten-team standings with a record of one win and three losses, while Switzerland is second with three wins and one loss.
Rachel Homan, a three-time World Champion and five-time Canadian national champion, is currently competing in her third Olympic Games. She is considered one of the most decorated curlers in Canadian history.