Rachel Homan’s Olympic story finally has the finish she has chased for years. On Saturday morning in Italy, Homan skipped Team Canada to a tense 10–7 win over the United States to claim the women’s curling bronze medal at Milano Cortina 2026.
More information: For the latest medal tally and how Norway, the USA and Italy are tracking at Milano Cortina 2026, see our full update here: Winter Olympics 2026 medal table and standings.
It was Homan’s first Olympic medal after falling short of the playoffs in her earlier Games appearances, and it also delivered a first Olympic podium moment for her teammates: third Tracy Fleury, second Emma Miskew, and lead Sarah Wilkes.
You can read more official Team Canada coverage via the Canadian Olympic Committee’s Olympic.ca.
A medal that completed the journey
Homan arrived in Milano Cortina carrying the weight of unfinished Olympic business. She had not reached the playoff rounds in her previous appearances, and the bronze-medal match offered one last high-pressure chance to turn that history into something tangible. Canada took it.
More information: For the latest medal tally and how Norway, the USA and Italy are tracking at Milano Cortina 2026, see our full update here: Winter Olympics 2026 medal table and standings.
The Canadians produced their biggest damage in two decisive surges: three points in the sixth end and another three in the eighth in a match defined by precision drawing, disciplined guarding, and constant scoreboard pressure.
How both teams reached the bronze game
Canada and the United States each finished the round robin at 6–3, then dropped their semifinal games. Canada fell 6–3 to Sweden’s Anna Hasselborg, while the U.S. lost 7–4 to Switzerland’s Silvana Tirinzoni, setting up a high-intensity bronze showdown between two teams that believed they had gold-medal quality.
More information: For the latest medal tally and how Norway, the USA and Italy are tracking at Milano Cortina 2026, see our full update here: Winter Olympics 2026 medal table and standings.
The round-robin loss that nearly derailed Canada
The rivalry carried extra bite because the U.S. had beaten Canada 9–8 in the round robin, a result that sparked a three-game Canadian skid and briefly placed their playoff path in jeopardy. Canada steadied itself at exactly the right time, finishing the tournament with a run of wins that carried them into the medal match.
Shot-making from the very first stones
The bronze game opened with both teams showing their best. Canada established early structure with a centre-line guard, and the Americans answered with touch-weight draws that forced tight shot selection right away. Fleury, after a tough stretch late in the tournament, delivered a key angle raised takeout that cleared a dangerous U.S. counter and helped Canada keep control of the front end.
The early ends became a draw-shot duel between the skips. Homan executed two elite draws in the opening end—first to freeze and outcount a U.S. stone at the back of the four-foot, then to sit directly on the button—setting a standard that never dropped.
Fine margins and constant pressure through five ends
Canada stayed aggressive, searching for steals and forcing precise responses. In the third, Canada flirted with a steal before the U.S. escaped with a single. In the fourth, a U.S. cluster inside the four-foot pushed Canada into narrow draw windows, and by the midpoint of the match, the Americans held a slim 3–2 edge.
More information: For the latest medal tally and how Norway, the USA and Italy are tracking at Milano Cortina 2026, see our full update here: Winter Olympics 2026 medal table and standings.
Even then, Canada’s front end was delivering. Wilkes and Miskew were both operating above 93% efficiency, keeping the house organized and giving Homan workable lanes when the scoreboard demanded bigger ends.
The sixth end swing: Canada finally breaks through
The match turned when the U.S. handed Canada a rare opening in the sixth. Canada attacked immediately, stacking stones and applying maximum pressure. When the U.S. could not fully resolve the danger, Homan capitalized with a clean final shot to post three—Canada’s first multi-point breakthrough at the most important moment of their Olympic week.
Late-end drama and a final-end mistake
The United States refused to fade. The Americans answered with a two in the seventh to pull level, and again found a way to score two in the ninth to keep the game alive heading into the tenth. But Canada’s eighth-end response—another three—proved the difference-maker.
In the tenth, with the outcome hanging on the last stones, the U.S. final attempt clipped a guard. Canada’s advantage held, and Team Canada secured the 10–7 win and the Olympic bronze medal.
A bronze medal that felt like gold
For Homan, the medal closed an Olympic chapter that had been defined by near-misses and relentless pressure. For Fleury, Miskew, and Wilkes, it was the moment their Olympic debut became a lifelong achievement. On a tense morning at Milano Cortina 2026, Team Canada’s women proved that persistence can still deliver—one perfect draw at a time.
