Unbeaten Canadian curling duo tied for 1st in group with host Swedes at mixed worlds

Canada’s Kadriana and Colton Lott remained undefeated at the world mixed doubles curling championship with a 6-4 win over South Korea on Monday in Östersund, Sweden.

The husband-and-wife tandem from Gimli, Man., fell behind 3-0 early as Jiyoon Kim and Byeongjin Jeong scored singles in each of the first three ends.

The second- and third-end steals came with Kadriana Lott narrowly missing on runback takeouts.

She responded with two key shots, a draw in the fourth end to score three and tie the game, then a difficult takeout to remove a South Korean shot stone in the fifth end that left Canada sitting two.

Kim was light on her last-shot draw and Canada stole a deuce for a lead it would not relinquish.

“Yeah, I think it definitely kick-started me, for sure,” Kadriana Lott said of her shot in the fifth end. “Missing those last shots and in the first couple ends doesn’t put you in the greatest mindset. But I know I can hit so it was great to make that one.”

Kim was light on her last-shot draw and Canada stole a deuce for a lead it would not relinquish.

“Yeah, I think it definitely kick-started me, for sure,” Kadriana Lott said of her shot in the fifth end. “Missing those last shots and in the first couple ends doesn’t put you in the greatest mindset. But I know I can hit so it was great to make that one.”

Pushback by opponent welcomed

Colton Lott said it was good to get some pushback after opening the tournament with convincing wins over New Zealand, Czechia and the Netherlands.

“Playing all eight ends and being in that tight of a game really gets us even more engaged in what we’re doing, and it prepares us for the end of the week,” he said.

The Lotts improved their record to 4-0, tied for first atop Group A with Swedish siblings Rasmus and Isabella Wrana.

Canada faces Scotland and Sweden on Tuesday.

South Korea fell to 1-3.

Round-robin play ends Thursday, with medal games being held on Saturday.