Canada curling team fires back at Sweden’s cheating allegations at Olympics
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Canada’s curling team hit back at Sweden after the Swedes accused the Canadians of cheating at the Winter Olympics.
Canadian curler Marc Kennedy addressed allegations that he improperly filmed his birth to the Swedes after Sweden sparked a global controversy on Friday by accusing Canada of double-tapping the stones.
“From what I know they came up with a plan to catch the teams in action at the Olympics,” Kennedy told reporters. he said.
“This was planned from the beginning yesterday. It was clear from what their coaches were saying and the way they were running towards the referees that something was going on and they were trying to catch us.
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Sweden’s Rasmus Wranaa (left) reacts next to Canada’s Ben Hebert during the men’s curling round between Canada and Sweden during the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium in Cortina d’Ampezzo on February 13, 2026. (Tiziana Fabi/AFP)
“I know we’re not the only team doing this,” Kennedy added. “So I think it’s – I don’t know what word is used for this – but it’s like a premeditated plan to get us.”
Curling Canada CEO Nolan Thiessen told reporters he thought the video was shot outside the strict rules governing Olympic filming.
“I was surprised that live video was outside of OBS rules,” Thiessen said. “This seems strange to me.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to Sweden’s curling team for comment.
according to National ReviewTeam Sweden denied any inappropriate filming, claiming the video came from the Swedish public broadcaster.
Sweden’s Niklas Edin said “absolutely not” when asked about Team Canada’s allegations.
“We’ve been saying this for maybe seven, eight years or so,” he said of the hog roping issue. “The media team decided to place the camera on the rope to see what was happening and explain it to people watching.
“At least we were told that it was the Swedish media and people who were following the game who did this. I have no idea, but that’s what we were told afterwards.”
Olympic Broadcast Services (OBS) released a statement stating that they did not produce the video circulating on social media showing Canadian curlers double-tapping the stones.
OBS added: “However, to clarify the general framework, OBS as well as properly accredited media rights holders who have received broadcast rights from the International Olympic Committee are permitted to film in Olympic venues.”
The fight came to a boiling point during Friday’s match between Kennedy and Swede Oskar Eriksson after Eriksson accused Kennedy of an illegal procedure called double tapping.
Kennedy shouted at Eriksson, “I’ve never done that once. You can go away.”
Eriksson replied: “I’ll show you a video after the match. I’ll show you a video with two meters above the hog line.”
Both parties appealed It was reported to the authorities, but the result did not change.
Swiss curlers made similar comments about Canada. Swiss curler Pablo Lachat-Couchepin was captured on broadcast saying he witnessed a double tap while talking to his coach during the fifth-last break.
WORLD CURLING FOUND NO VIOLATIONS AFTER CHEATING ALLEGATIONS IN THE ROCK CANADA-SWEDEN CURLING MATCH
Canadians Ben Hebert, Brett Gallant and Marc Kennedy compete in the men’s curling round-robin match against Switzerland at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, on February 14, 2026. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
“I don’t want to focus too much on it but it was a double touch and the referee saw it,” he said. Toronto Star. It was unclear whether these concerns were conveyed to authorities.
The debate spread to the women’s side on Saturday.
Canadian curler Rachel Homan had her stone removed after an official ruled that she touched the stone again after letting go of its handle. Homan protested, but under World Curling rules there are no official replays and the referee’s final call stands.
Accordingly Athletic, In a video replay of the incident, Homan’s finger was seen grazing the rock.
World Curling first released a statement addressing the allegations made by Sweden on Friday and Kennedy’s subsequent response.
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Canada’s Brad Jacobs and Marc Kennedy practice during the men’s curling tournament against Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, on February 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Misper Apawu)
“The game referees are located at the end of each sheet and cannot physically see every shooting violation. However, when notified of shooting problems, the game referees are positioned to observe the shooting at three ends. No violations were recorded during this observation period in Friday night’s game,” the statement said.
The sport’s governing body also addressed two rules concerns, including “double tapping” and touching the granite. According to the rules, players may touch the handle multiple times, but “touching the handle after the hog line is prohibited and will result in the removal of the piece from play.”
Additionally, if the granite of the stone is touched during the “forward movement”, the stone will be removed from play.
As a result of the allegations, World Curling said two officials would be assigned to monitor all deliveries from Saturday’s matches.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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