China Serves Curling Notice at PanCon
With files from World Curling
China’s Xu Xiaoming won a battle of Asian teams in the men’s final of the Pan Continental Championships.
Relegated to the B Division in 2023 after domestic COVID-19 travel restrictions saw their teams miss the 2022 event, the Chinese crushed their way to this year’s A Division and have reclaimed their place in style with a 6-4 championship win over Japan’s Team Shinya Abe.
Canada’s Brad Gushue defeated China in the round-robin
The see-saw battle in Lacombe, Alta. saw Japan fourth thrower Tetsuro Shimizu score two points in the seventh end with a precise in-off takeout for a 4-3 lead.
An open eighth end, reminiscent of the first two, had the teams trading hits and allowed China to nose hit the shot stone on their last delivery to score a single point.
Japan was forced to take a single in the ninth end, drawing against a guarded Chinese shot stone.
Going into the final end, China was 5-4 up with last-stone advantage. A double clear of the guards from Chinese third Fei Zueqing gave his skip the open hit for a final score of 6-4 and the gold medal.
Zuequing’s favour was not lost on his veteran skip.
After the win, the 40-year-old Xu said: “I feel that my young players played better and better, and made progress day-by-day.
“I’m very happy with their play.”
In the bronze medal game, Canada’s Brad Gushue and USA’s John Shuster were tied twice—5-5 at the fifth-end break and 7-7 after seven ends—after an over-curled Canadian stone cost the hosts two points.
In the 10th end, USA led 9-8 with last rock and after Canada froze to their opponent’s shot stone, Shuster threw a perfect draw to cover the button to win 10-8.
John Shuster captured bronze for USA
“That was an incredible game against an incredible team,” Shuster said.“We’ve been knocking on the door with these guys. They don’t make too many tactical mistakes, so when you’ve got a half-shot against those guys, you have to capitalize.”
Shuster’s Americans went 6-1 in the round robin behind Gushue’s perfect 7-0 won/loss record.
China and Japan both finished at 4-3 while Korea’s Lee Jaebeom finished 3-4.
Australia’s Hugh Millikin and New Zealand’s Anton Hood finished 2-5 and Chinese Taipei’s Ken Hsu wound up at 0-7.
