The U.S. men’s curling team won gold, but hilariously received the wrong medals
On Saturday, February 24th, the U.S. men’s curling team defeated Sweden 10-7 to win the gold medal at the 2018 Winter Olympics in a sensational — and history-making — performance.
After John Shuster led Team USA to victory in PyeongChang, South Korea, the men were overjoyed about their big win. And although they successfully stunned Sweden, the world’s No. 1 team, not everything went as planned when it came time to hand out medals. In fact, after the medal ceremony concluded, Shuster and the other guys quickly realized they had been awarded the wrong medals.
But the medals dangling around their necks weren’t silver or bronze. No, the U.S. men’s curling team (with the exception of team member John Landsteiner) had actually received the gold medals for…wait for it…women’s curling. Hey, a medal is a medal, right?
At the press conference following the ceremony, the curlers were good sports (pun intended) about the hilarious snafu. Proving that nothing can get in the way of their high spirits, Shuster laughed it off. “It wasn’t a big deal, I promise,” he said. By the time the team was in front of the cameras and chatting with reporters, the mistake had been corrected and everyone had happily received their proper medals.
The US men's curling team just realized the gold medals they were awarded moments ago say "women's curling gold medal" on them. Their coaches are working on it … #pyeongchang2018 pic.twitter.com/PERIMuXN98
— Alyssa Roenigk (@alyroe) February 24, 2018
Unsurprisingly, Twitter loved the mix-up over the men’s curling medals.
Who run the world? Girls ! Ahahahha
— Ariane Gagnon (@ArianeGagnon) February 24, 2018
— munhuggaren (@munhuggaren) February 24, 2018
A good excuse for this GIF pic.twitter.com/degXsE0QvE
— drlearnalot, RL voodoo doll (@DrLearnALot) February 24, 2018
— A E Mcdermott (@LastBigMomma) February 24, 2018
https://twitter.com/udfredirect/status/967453695347748864
We’re glad the curlers took it all in stride. While the mishap at the medal ceremony was certainly unexpected, it did make for a good laugh. With a handful of Olympic events still remaining — the women’s curling finals included — here’s hoping everyone else receives the correct medals.
