Controversy over Korean curling 'absurd misjudgment' and there is a possibility of a reversal, but the referee 'ended early'

*This content was translated by AI.

Kim Sun-young (Gangneung City Hall) and Jung Young-seok (Gangwon Provincial Office) of the curling mixed-double team, which competed in the 2026 Milan/Cortina D'Ampezzo (Italy) Winter Olympics, suffered an absurd misjudgment from the first game of the competition. Even though there is still a possibility of a reversal, the referee intervened and ended the game early.

Kim Sun-young and Jung Young-seok lost 3-10 to Sweden's Isabella Brano and Rasmus Brano in the first round of the curling mix double robin at Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, on the 5th (Korea time).

The "scene in question" came from the sixth end when South Korea was trailing 3-10. With two ends still left, the referee suddenly suggested the players to end the game.

In curling, there are cases where the remaining ends are not played meaninglessly if the possibility of a turnaround is deemed slim, and the team that is trailing first withdraws. However, this time, the referee, not the player's side, first proposed an early end to the game, which was a problem. It is true that the situation was falling behind 3-10, but with two ends remaining, there was a possibility of a reversal.

The players were also puzzled. According to Money Today, Jung Young-seok said, "I think I thought it was difficult because I was seven points apart, but I couldn't protest properly because I didn't have a situation." Kim Sun-young said, "It's a referee's mistake. The referee must be mistaken and finish it." This is the first time this has happened," he said.

Shin Mi-sung, the standing referee of the Korea Curling Federation, also said, "As we still had two ends left, we could win 12 points, so it was possible to turn the tables. It was not appropriate for the referee to terminate it like this," he pointed out.

Still, the players plan to focus more on the rest of the game without being shaken by the damage of the misjudgment as the game is already over. Jung Young-seok said, "There is a referee's fault, but I'm sorry I couldn't show you doing it until the end," and Kim Sun-young vowed, "I'll think of it as one happening and do better in the next game."

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*This content was translated by AI.