February 24, 2024
On Saturday morning, the girls played for medals at the 2024 World Junior Curling Championships held at the Kisakario Sports Institute in Lojoja.
gold medal game
Switzerland defeated Canada 5-4 in the semifinals and faced Japan for the gold medal and world title. Japan defeated Norway 8-5 in the semifinals on Friday.
Japan won the silver medal last year and the gold medal in 2022, while Switzerland finished fourth in Fussen, Germany last year with an undefeated round robin performance.
In the first end, Swiss skip Ksenia Schwaller tried to empty the end, but her shooter got stuck and Switzerland took a single. In the second match in Japan, skip Momoha Tabata landed two nose hits and nailed them perfectly. Switzerland 1st and Japan 2nd place.
Japan’s No. 3 Mirai Nipei made two half-hearted outs, creating a chance for Switzerland to score their second goal. They took advantage of the opportunity and after three games scored twice to take a 3-2 lead.
In the fourth inning, Tabata tried to score two points with a hit, but his shot missed and he only got one point. Schwaller scored a run in the fifth inning and led 4-3 going into the break.
In the 6th inning, Schwaller made a perfect hit-and-roll at the end, and Tabata allowed a very difficult takeout and was blanked. Her stone overtook Switzerland’s stone, allowing Japan to steal one base. Switzerland is 5th, Japan is 6th, and 3rd.
In the seventh inning, Tabata had a chance to blank at the end, but her stone missed the target and Japan allowed another single.
Tabata needed a perfect draw in the eighth inning, but he easily hit another Swiss Stone into scoring position and allowed four stolen bases. At this point, Japan lost and Switzerland became the world champion.
Final result: Switzerland 10-3 Japan
After the match, Xenia Schwaller was very satisfied and said: In the sixth end she made a strange mistake in the blank where she was playing well, but of course she did not expect that. ”
Summing up the week, she added: “My team played great all week and I’m so proud of them. We did a great job all week, so I feel great!”
bronze medal game
Canada faced Norway in the bronze medal match. Canada earned a silver medal at the World Junior B Championships in December 2023, qualifying for the tournament. Norway won the world junior bronze medal last year.
Norway took a one-point lead in the first end. In the second, Canada scored two points.
In the third inning, Norwegian skip Torrid Bjornstad hit a run, tying the score at 2-2. In the fourth inning, Canadian skip Myra Plett hit a nose hit to restore the lead to 3-2.
Norway had a chance to score three points after the fifth end was empty. Bjornstad made the necessary tap and went up 5-3.
In the seventh, Plett made a difficult angle tap and scored two points. Her stone was slightly heavier, so her only Canadian score was a single. Norway is 5, Canada is 4 after 7.
In the 8th inning, Norway scored a single and took a 2-run lead. In the 9th inning, a running back was left to single to Plett, but he missed and Norway stole the single to make it 7-4.
In the 10th, Norway defeated Canada, who had run out of stones, to win the bronze medal.
Afterwards, Norwegian runner-up Ingeborg Forbregd expressed her thoughts, saying, “Wow, I’m really happy!” The start was a little tough, but the second half was good. It ended successfully! ”
Final result: Norway 7-5 Canada
The gold-medal winning Swiss team consisted of skip Xenia Schwaller, third place Serena Gaffner, second place Fabienne Rieder, and lead Serena Rychiger, with alternate Zoe Schwaller and coach Andreas Schwaller. Supported by Waller.
The silver medalist Japanese team consisted of skip Momoha Tabata, 3rd place Mirai Nipei, 2nd place Yuna Miura, and lead Mikoto Nakajima, supported by substitute Yui Ueno and coach Hiroshi Sato.
The bronze medalist Norwegian team consisted of skip Trild Bjornstad, third place Nora Østgaard, second place Ingeborg Vorbregd and lead Eirin Kjaerland, supported by coach Ingebrit Bjornstad. .
The men’s teams will compete for medals on Saturday at 15:00 (EET).
Click here for all contest results.
Click here for streaming information.
Connect with the World Curling Federation during the 2024 World Junior Curling Championships on TikTok. XSearch the hashtag on , Instagram, Facebook, and Weibo. #WJCC and #curling