Winter Olympics 2022 - Team GB guaranteed second curling medal as Eve Muirhead guides women to final
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Updated 19/02/2022 at 08:33 GMT
Team GB recovered from 4-0 down at the end of the first end to beat Sweden 12-11 after an extra end in a remarkable and thrilling match that sends Eve Muirhead's team into the gold-medal match against Japan. Muirhead's side scored four in the ninth end but Sweden forced an extra end with a three. But, with the hammer, Team GB crossed the line to guarantee GB another medal.
'Extraordinary' - Team GB's women reach curling final with 'absolutely brilliant' win
Eve Muirhead led the women's curlers to the final and another guaranteed medal for Team GB, following in the footsteps of Bruce Mouat and the men on Thursday.
After an epic fightback to eventually beat Sweden 12-11 after an extra end, Muirhead will lead her rink in the gold medal match against Japan on Sunday (01:05 GMT).
Team GB found themselves with a mountain to climb after the first end as they went 4-0 down following a short stone from Muirhead.
But a brilliant recovery in the second made the match an instant classic as GB put three in the house, with skip Anna Hasselborg unable to get a defensive Sweden out of trouble.
At 4-3 up, Hasselborg's final stone for Sweden took one for 5-3, but that was all Team GB could have asked for as Sweden looked sapped of ambition.
Muirhead reduced the deficit to one after playing it safe in the fourth end with the hammer.
And after the British skip struck yellow onto yellow with a disastrous shot in the fifth end, it looked like the Swedes would take the lead.
But Hasselborg failed to take advantage with the hammer and Muir, making amends with a brilliant guarding stone, managed a steal to pull things level.
Sweden retook the lead at once after picking up two in the sixth end with a devastating hammer as Britain failed to curl a yellow stone inside the reds with their final stone.
But GB once again pulled level in the seventh end as Sweden failed to knock a yellow stone out of the 12-foot, leaving Muirhead to land her final stone on the button for two.
In the eighth end there was too much weight on Hasselborg's final stone and they could only take one for a 8-7 lead.
But Muirhead gave GB an emphatic lead ahead of the 10th end with a truly brilliant final stone. With the house crowded full of yellow stones, Sweden looked to reduce the loss to two, but Muirhead knocked two red stones out of the four-foot line to take four for a 11-8 lead.
Yet somehow victory remained out of reach after Muirhead played a defensive guard stone and drew the Swedish offence, their hammer hitting a British stone on the nose and out of the house for three to force an extra end.
After three hours, with their final stone, Sweden failed get inside the British stone inside the house and conceded the match, seeing Britain through to the final.
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