 Rachel Homan's (photo: Will Palmer, World Curling) big-weight takeout ability was on display all week at the 2025 LGT World Wome's Curling Championship - but it was a precis tap that lifted her team to a second straight world title. Team Homan of Ottawa defeated Switzerland's Team Silvana Tirinzoni 7-3 in Sunday's gold-medal game at Uijeongbu Arena. The victory marks back-to-back world championships for Homan, vice-skip Tracy Fleury, second Emma Miskew, lead Sarah Wilkes, alternate Rachelle Brown, and national coaches Viktor Kjell and Renee Sonnenberg. They are the first Canadian team to repeat as world champions since Sandra Schmirler's team in 1993 and 1994. Homan and Miskew also join the elite company, earning their third world titles after previous wins in 2017 and 2024. They now stand alongside Schmirler and her teammates Jan Betker, Joan McCusker and Marcia Gudereit - the only other Canadian curlers to win three women's world championships. Team Schmirler captured its third crown in 1997. Up by one in the eighth end, Homan showcased surgical precision with a tap that promoted her own stone on the four-foot into a Swiss rock on the button. The Swiss stone slid back just enough to leave Canada sitting two counters biting the button. Switzerland's fourth Alina Paetz attempted a draw to score but overcurled and clipped a guard, handing Canada a steal of two and a three-point lead. Team Homan stole another point in the ninth, prompting Switzerland to concede. "My team was just throwing it so well, so I know exactly where to put the broom and the girls managed it so well. It was just huge to lie two and put the pressure on her. Thankfully, we got a miss. We don't get misses out of Alina ever, so we tried to put the pedal down and take advantage of that," Homan said. Homan's team had confidence in her making the shot to help it gain the inside track to the championship. "She got all the shots. That's why she's so scary to play against because she can throw the peels, clear four rocks, or she can draw the pin whenever we need it. She's a weapon," Fleury said, who was named to the All-Star team as the third with the highest shooting percentage throughout the week at 88.1 per cent. The first half of the game was tightly contested. Switzerland opened with hammer, but Canada stole a point in the third end for an early lead. Team Tirinzoni responded with two in the fourth and forced Homan to a single in the fifth. Despite a brilliant Canadian runback double to clear the house, Switzerland buried a draw behind a centre guard, which couldn't be chased. Canada settled for a single and a 2-2 tie. Team Homan's win capped a resilient week. The Canadians finished the round robin at 10-2, placing third. Without a bye to the semifinals, they battled through a qualification win over Scotland. Then they needed a double takeout in the semifinal against South Korea to force an extra end - eventually punching their ticket to the final. "This week was a grind, a ton of games back to back. I know we're exhausted, but we know we had one more game in us. We knew we were going to have to battle hard against Alina," Homan said. It is the first time a Canadian men's or women's team has won a gold medal overseas at a world championship since Homan and Miskew's victory in 2017 at Beijing. "We're so happy we could do Canada proud and bring home the gold again. Back-to-back is an unbelievable feeling. It's definitely strange not having our family members here. It's probably the first time ever going overseas without them. We can't wait to celebrate with them when we get back home," Homan said. It marked the second straight year Team Homan and Team Tirinzoni - the world's top two-ranked teams - met in the world final. Lately, the Canadians have dominated the rivalry, holding a 12-2 head-to-head record since the start of the 2022-23 season. Canada also beat Switzerland earlier in the week in a thrilling extra-end round-robin win. Thanks to Team Homan's performances in 2024 and 2025, Canada has earned the maximum 30 Olympic Qualification Points - securing the women's team a direct berth to the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic Winter Games. Earlier Sunday, China's Team Rui Wang defeated hometown favourites Team Eunji Gim of South Korea 9-4 to win the bronze medal. |
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Saskatchewan's Rylan Kleiter (Photo: Anil Mungal/GSOC) defeated Italy's Joel Retornaz 7-6 to grab their first win on the 2025-2026 season in Trentino, Italy.
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