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5G iced out of semifinals by Team Canada in women's curling

Published: 20 Feb. 2026, 15:06

Seol Ye-eun and Kim Min-ji fight back tears after a 10-7 loss to Canada in the women’s curling round-robin match at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium in Italy on Feb. 19. The defeat ended Korea’s hopes of advancing to the semifinals. [YONHAP]

CORTINA, Italy — Thick snow clogged the mountain roads into the alpine town on Thursday, delaying the start of women’s curling at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics by nearly 30 minutes.

Canada's coach called it a "winter wonderland."

For team Korea, the journey matched the conditions. The team traveled from Milan by train to Venice, then transferred to a bus bound for the Dolomites. On a winding mountain road, the bus stopped for nearly an hour so workers could fit snow chains. The trip stretched beyond eight hours.

By the time Korea reached the Cortina Olympic Stadium, the equation was simple. Win and advance to the semifinals. Lose and go home.

The 10-team round robin sends four to the knockout stage. Korea entered the final session at 5-3, tied for third. A victory over Canada would secure a place in the last four.

Team Korea — affectionately known as “5G” at home — carried more than the weight of a must-win game, with curling enjoying renewed attention since the women’s silver medal at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics raised expectations for another deep run.

Members of Korea’s women’s curling team, right, react after a 10-7 loss to Canada in a round-robin match at the Milan?Cortina Winter Olympics at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium in Italy on Feb. 19, 2026. [YONHAP]

Korea made the first move. A three-point third end turned a deficit into a 3-2 lead. The teams traded points and remained tied 4-4 through five ends before the sixth swung the game.

Canada, skipped by three-time world champion Rachel Homan, capitalized on Korea's mistakes and built a four-point end. Homan’s precise shot-making drew audible reactions from the crowd. The margin proved decisive.

Korea pushed late but fell 10-7.

Members of Korea’s women’s curling team wave to the audience after a 10-7 loss to Canada in a round-robin match at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium in Italy on Feb. 19, 2026. [YONHAP]

Second Kim Su-ji looked back at the sixth end.

“I think we made mistakes we shouldn’t have,” she said. “As a sweeper, we didn’t need to get that close to give up a big end. We didn’t check that part carefully enough. That’s why we gave up so many points. That’s the most disappointing part of this game.”

Still, Korea chose to attack rather than retreat against the world No. 2 team.

“We were confident in our performance and our ice reading,” Kim Su-ji said. “We thought we were ready if the situation came, and we had confidence.”

The result on the neighboring sheet soon followed. The United States edged Switzerland 7-6 to improve to 6-3. Korea, at 5-4, finished fifth, one win short of the semifinals.

Skip Gim Eun-ji lowered her head as she walked through the mixed zone. Near the Korean bench, the usually upbeat 5G squad crouched together, wiping tears with tissues.

“We knew if we won, we’d go through, and if we lost, we’d be out,” Third Kim Min-ji said. “It’s very disappointing. We still had a lot more we wanted to show, and we couldn’t show it.”

Lead Seol Ye-eun’s eyes were swollen.

“They were tears of disappointment,” she said. “We could have done better, and not doing that hurts. When I realized it was really over, that made me sad.”

Fans told the players it was okay to cry after giving everything they had.

Alternate Seol Ye-ji struggled to continue.

“I’m sorry. Thank you for recognizing that we gave it our all, and I’m sorry we couldn’t give you the result,” she said before trailing off.

Still, this remains a young roster. When reminded that veterans such as Canada’s Homan and Sweden’s Anna Hasselborg continue to compete at the highest level on the Olympic stage, the players managed a smile.

Kim Su-ji looked ahead.

“Our Olympics ends here, but we still have the world championships and the National Winter Games left,” she said. “If we regroup and prepare well, I think we can show something even better going forward.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY PARK LIN [[email protected]]