The Winter Olympics got off to an embarrassing start for the organisers as the lights went out 10 minutes into the curling as two British hopes were forced to wait
The Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina was only 10 minutes old when a power cut struck and bought a halt to proceedings. The Games got underway with the curling, but those competing were forced to wait when the lights went out.
Despite the Opening Ceremony at the San Siro not taking place until Friday some of the events have begun. The curling started with the first mixed doubles round robin matches, but they were forced to pause due to a power failure at the Olympic Ice Stadium.
Play was halted by officials with Britain’s Bruce Mouat and Jen Dodds in the first end of their match against Norway. The British curlers seemed to be in good spirits despite the delay, with Dodds seen laughing at the disruption while an official was communicating with staff in the venue.
BBC commentator Steve Cram, who couldn’t help but laugh at the disruption, said: “We have had a power cut here at the stadium. Not a great start for the organisers here. I think play has been paused, because the scoring screens have gone off. Most of the lights on the ice seem to be still on, but certainly most has gone.”
The crowd saw the funny side as they cheered after the lights flickered back into life in the arena to allow competition to resume following a delay of around five minutes.
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Dodds and Maout would ultimately earn an 8-6 win to start the round robin phase impressively – the latter making light of the unexpected disruption. “It was a great atmosphere, the venue is amazing and the ice is really good,” he said. “I didn’t really mind the lights going off, it was a bit of a dance and a boogie, a rave, nightclub you know.”
Britain’s best medal haul from a Winter Games is five – that coming at Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018 – but UK Sport says up to eight medals could be won following continued investment.
Funding through the National Lottery and government, UK Sport has invested more than £32.5m across the current four-year cycle for the Winter Olympics and Paralympics with an “ambition for the UK to become an ever-greater force” in winter sports.
Eve Muirhead OBE is a gold medal winner from the last Games at Beijing 2022. She has since retired from elite sport, but stepped straight into a senior leadership role within Team GB, leading them as Chef de Mission for Milan-Cortina 2026.
She has said: “The potential within this team is exceptionally high, and while we don’t always benefit from the same ease of access to snow and ice as some of our rivals, when I look at the class of 2026, I see a real opportunity to challenge the status quo.”
