Canada coach criticises Olympic curling rule shift

February 17, 2026 Oliver Obel

A mid-Games rule adjustment has intensified scrutiny at the Winter Olympics, where a dispute over stone delivery violations has placed Team Canada at the center of controversy.

World Curling confirmed Sunday that it has modified how potential “double-touch” violations will be monitored for the remainder of the tournament. The change follows a series of accusations during round-robin play in Milan-Cortina involving Canadian players.

Federation shifts approach after on-ice dispute

The issue gained widespread attention after television cameras captured Canada’s Marc Kennedy responding angrily to Sweden’s Oskar Eriksson, telling him to "f**k off" after Eriksson suggested Kennedy had double-touched a stone following release.

Under curling rules, players are not permitted to make contact with a stone after delivering it. Such infractions can result in penalties if confirmed by officials.

A day after the exchange, Canadian women’s skip Rachel Homan faced a similar allegation. Kennedy himself has been accused twice in separate matches of breaching delivery rules. Team Canada has denied any wrongdoing.

In a statement issued after meetings with representatives of competing National Olympic Committees, World Curling announced an update to its monitoring procedures.

"Following a meeting with representatives of the competing National Olympic Committees, an update in the stone monitoring protocol has been confirmed, beginning with the evening session on Sunday 15 February," the federation said.

Previously, two umpires had been assigned to actively rotate among the four matches in each session to observe deliveries. Under the revised approach, those officials will remain on the field of play but will only monitor deliveries if requested by the teams involved.

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"This change in protocol will see the two umpires who had previously been actively monitoring athlete deliveries remain available in the field of play, but will now only monitor athlete deliveries at the request of the competing teams," the statement said.

It added: "The umpires, when requested, will monitor deliveries for a minimum of three ends."

https://twitter.com/CollinRugg/status/2022726112485494867

Canadian coach questions timing

Paul Webster, a coach for Team Canada, told The Grand Slam of Curling that while the underlying issue may warrant attention, implementing changes during the Olympics is problematic.

“If you listen to what Sweden said, I think they're right," Webster said.

"This has been a problem that they've tried to identify to our international federation, and it wasn't acted on. Now, we're trying to quickly fix things at an Olympics, and I think it's the wrong thing to do.

“We have untrained people doing things they’ve never done before, and we’re not at some bonspiel (curling tournament) in Saskatchewan just trying things out. We’re at the Olympics.

“I have a lot of respect for people who are here and volunteering their time, but I think we really have to question if we’re doing new things at the Olympic Games. We’ve had four years to prepare."

Webster added: "Our teams, all the 20 teams here, have done a really good job preparing for these Olympic Games. I would like our international federation to match that effort.”

Broader implications

Mid-competition procedural changes are rare at the Olympics, where teams typically spend years preparing under a stable rule framework. By shifting to a request-based monitoring system, World Curling appears to be balancing concerns about enforcement with objections raised by teams over constant oversight.

Whether the revised protocol reduces tension or adds another strategic layer to matches may become clearer as the round-robin stage continues. For now, the debate over stone deliveries has become an unexpected storyline at the Games.

Sources: World Curling statement; The Grand Slam of Curling