Just minutes into the excitement of the 2026 Winter Olympics, an unexpected glitch brought the first event to a halt.
DOBBIACO, Italy — In a startling turn of events, the inaugural action of these Winter Games encountered its first snag in less than five minutes. During the opening mixed doubles curling matches on Wednesday, the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, experienced a brief power outage, casting the arena into darkness and causing a delay in play.
As this disruption unfolded, two of the four games had players mid-action. Estonia's Harri Lill was preparing to release his stone when the lights flickered, but he chose to continue regardless. Meanwhile, Sweden’s Rasmus Wranå, also ready to throw, hesitated as the ambience shifted.
The scoreboards went dark, game clocks ceased counting down, and all four sheets of ice were rendered inactive as players stood by, awaiting news. Amidst the uncertainty, Canada's Brett Gallant shared a light-hearted moment with his coaches, while Korea's Kim Seon-yeong and Sweden's Isabella Wranå humorously pretended their brooms were musical instruments, strumming them like air guitars.
Fortunately, after about three minutes, the lights returned to full brightness, prompting a sarcastic cheer from the crowd. Norway's Magnus Nedregotten flashed a thumbs-up, Great Britain's Jennifer Dodds beamed with a smile, and Lill joined in applauding the return of normalcy.
Bruce Mouat from Great Britain remarked on the unusual experience, saying, "That was unique, I would say. I think we had a little dance." The competition resumed shortly after a pause of just over five minutes.
In a statement provided to The Athletic, the organizing committee explained, "There was a brief interruption to competition at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium due to an energy-related issue. The interruption lasted approximately three minutes. Power was restored immediately, and competition has since resumed and is ongoing as planned." However, the committee did not provide specific details regarding what led to the electrical problem.
Interestingly, while much attention had been given to the rapid construction of the hockey arena in Milan and the sliding center in Cortina, it was the curling stadium—originally constructed for the 1956 Winter Olympics—that faced the first live issue of the Games.
Officially known as the Stadio Olimpico del Ghiaccio, this venue was originally designed as an outdoor facility 70 years ago, hosting figure skating, hockey matches, and the grand opening and closing ceremonies. Over time, it received a roof and updates to prepare for the 2026 Olympic events.
Meanwhile, the Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena in Milan has faced construction delays and challenges, including being three feet shorter than required and experiencing issues like holes in the ice during prior test events. Additionally, the Cortina Sliding Centre has stirred controversy due to its rushed construction and higher-than-anticipated costs.
In the curling competitions held on Wednesday, teams from Sweden, Switzerland, Great Britain, and Canada emerged victorious in their opening matches, while the United States and the defending champions from Italy were set to debut on Thursday morning. The mixed doubles matches are scheduled to continue through Tuesday.
