On one of the most anticipated days of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games Canada has struck an early blow against their North American neighbours with a crushing 9-2 victory in their women’s curling match at the Vancouver Olympic Centre.

Later in the day, the Canadian and United States men’s ice hockey teams will square off for top billing in their group with bragging rights on the line, but from 9am the Canadian women’s curling team wooed the crowd with their technical prowess.

The USA took the lead in the second end but that was the end of the road for the southern neighbours as Canada scored four points in end 3, two in end 5 and a further 3 in end 7 to send the 5,000 person crowd into fever pitch.

With the result, Canada maintain their 100 per cent record after five matches and are now positioning themselves as gold medal favourites in one of more popular sports amongst host nation fans.

Their remaining matches will be against Sweden, China, Great Britain and Russia, with victory in three of these matches enough to guarantee them top position heading into the semi-finals.

Defending Olympic champions Sweden currently sit in second position in the group having lost one game to date, while current world champions China are in third place.

In the three other matches on the rink this morning the race for fourth place intensified, as medal favourites heading into the Games, Great Britain, were on the end of a high scoring 10-6 defeat to Switzerland.

Danish position number four Madeline Dupont sealed the Scandinavian nation’s second win of the tournament with a thrilling last stone victory over Germany. With scores tied at 5-5 heading into the last end and Germany holding a two stone advantage with one shot remaining, Dupont cannoned off both German stones to win the match.

And in the final match Japan and Russia needed to play a tie break end after the scores finished at 9 a piece after the ten regulation ends. Japan sealed the victory with three stones in the tie break end

With all10 teams now having played between 5 and 7 matches, Canada has won five matches, with Sweden and China having won 4 each. In the race for the final semi-final spot, Great Britain, Switzerland and Japan all have three wins, while Denmark, Germany, Russia and the United States all have two wins.

David Polglase    
AOC-Vancouver