CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Sweden's sibling duo Isabella and Rasmus Wranaa staged a comeback in the last end to edge the United States 6-5, capturing the mixed doubles curling gold medal at the Milan-Cortina Olympic Winter Games here on Tuesday.
Entering the semifinals as the last qualifying pair, Sweden stunned top-ranked Britain with a dominant 9-3 win to reach the final.
On Tuesday, Sweden avenged its 8-7 loss to the U.S. in the round robin, with its victory built on execution as Isabella produced 97 percent of her shots and her elder brother 74 percent.
Locked at 3-3 after five ends in the gold medal match, Sweden took a narrow lead by scoring one point in its home power play in the sixth end. The United States responded with two points in its away power play in the seventh, but Sweden delivered under pressure in the final end, scoring two points to clinch the gold medal.
"It's the last shot. If you make it, it's Olympic gold," Isabella said. "Of course you're nervous, but we stayed calm, talked through the call and trusted the sweep."
Reflecting on their journey after three consecutive losses in the round robin, Rasmus said the team never lost belief. "We told ourselves it's never over until it's over. If we win from here, we win the Olympics," he said. "When I heard Bella call it 'clean,' I knew we were going to be champions."
U.S. curler Korey Dropkin described the result as "bittersweet," noting that while the team had hoped for gold, the silver medal still represented a major achievement.
Earlier in the day, Italy's Stefania Constantini and Amos Mosaner defeated Britain 5-3 to claim bronze.
Leading 4-3 heading into the final end, Italy held its last stone advantage as Constantini executed a precise hit-and-stay to score a single point and seal the victory. ■
