S.Korea's curling team slip to fourth after Switzerland defeat, bobsled pairs finish outside top 10

By Kim Dong-young Posted : February 18, 2026, 09:49 Updated : February 18, 2026, 09:49
South Korea's skip Kim Eun-ji throws a stone during a round-robin standings against Switzerland at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics in Italy, Feb. 18, 2026. Yonhap
 
SEOUL, February 18 (AJP) - South Korea's women's curling team dropped to fourth place in the round-robin standings after falling to world No. 1 Switzerland 5-7 on Wednesday, putting their semifinal push under increased pressure at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.

Skip Kim Eun-ji, third Kim Min-ji, second Kim Su-ji, lead Seol Ye-eun and fifth Seol Ye-ji — the squad known as "Team 5G" — were edged out at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium in Cortina d'Ampezzo, sliding from a joint second-place position just one day earlier.

The match remained tight through the opening ends. South Korea drew first blood in the first end, and the two teams held level through the third, but Switzerland broke the game open by scoring three in the second end to wrest control of the momentum. The sides traded single points through the middle stages.

The decisive blow came late. Switzerland posted two more in the ninth end off a double takeout, stretching their lead beyond reach. South Korea chased hard in the final end but could not close the gap.

With the loss, South Korea now stand at 4-3, tied with Canada for fourth. Sweden leads the table at 6-1, with Switzerland and the United States both at 5-2.

The team's campaign is at a critical crossroads. South Korea face Sweden — the tournament's frontrunner — next, before a pivotal showdown against Canada on Thursday that will largely determine whether they advance to the knockouts. The top four teams of the ten-nation field proceed to the semifinals, with medal rounds scheduled for Feb. 20 to 22.
 
South Korea's "Team 5G" gather around to encourage each other after falling to Switzerland by 5-7 at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics in Italy, Feb. 18, 2026. Yonhap
 
"Team 5G," which went unbeaten at the 2025 Harbin Asian Winter Games, has been one of the more closely watched sides in Cortina. The team is aiming to improve on the silver medal won by "Team Kim" at the 2018 PyeongChang Games — South Korea's only Olympic curling medal to date.

South Korea's broader Olympic campaign has yielded six medals through Day 12 — one gold, two silver and three bronze — though the country remains without a gold in short track, a discipline that has driven the medal count at every Winter Games since 1992. Curling now stands as one of the remaining paths to the podium.

Bobsled pairs finish well off the pace

South Korea's two men's bobsled entries wrapped up their two-man campaigns outside the top 10 at the Cortina Sliding Center on Wednesday.
 
South Korea's pilot Suk Young-jin and brakeman Chae Byung-do finish their race at the at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics in Italy, Feb. 18, 2026. Yonhap
 
The pairing of pilot Kim Jin-su and brakeman Kim Hyung-geun posted a combined four-run time of 3 minutes 43.60 seconds to finish 13th among 26 teams. The sled had shown early promise — clocking 55.53 seconds in the opening run for fifth overall — but gradual slippage through subsequent runs cost them positions. They sat 12th after two runs before fading to 13th by the end.

Pilot Suk Young-jin and brakeman Chae Byung-do finished 19th with a combined time of 3:44.61.

Germany swept all three medals for the second consecutive Games, having done the same at Beijing 2022. Johannes Lochner and Georg Fleischhauer claimed gold in 3:39.70, ahead of Francesco Friedrich and Alexander Schuller in silver and Adam Ammour and Alexander Schaller in bronze.

Meanwhile, both South Korean sleds are entered in the four-man event, scheduled for Feb. 21 to 22.
Kim Dong-young

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