US Men Strike Curling Olympic Gold but Get Wrong Medals

On Saturday, Team USA made history with its first gold medal in Men's curling at the 2018 Winter [...]

By Daniel S. Levine

On Saturday, Team USA made history with its first gold medal in Men's curling at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, but it took them awhile to get the right medals.

During the medal ceremony, they were presented with gold medals, but there was one big problem — they all read "Women's Curling."

According to the New York Post, the only teammate to get the right medal on the first try was alternate Joe Polo. John Shuster, John Landsteiner, Matt Hamilton and Tyler George all received the wrong medals.

The flub was quickly fixed, so Team USA did not have to wait long to get the medals they will cherish for the rest of their lives.

"It wasn't a big deal at all, I promise," Schuster said after the ceremony.

Team USA beat Sweden, 10-7, in a shocker. It was the first time the Americans even medalled in the men's tournament since winning bronze at the 2006 Torino Games. Team Canada was hoping to win its fourth consecutive gold medal, but the men lost to Team USA and lost the bronze match to Switzerland.

"It's too surreal to even think about right now," George told NBC after the victory. "I think it's going to hit harder tomorrow but I keep waiting to wake up. I've not been emotional because it's just shock. To go from where we were a few days ago… the emotions, they're bottled up and they're building but it's going to be a little bit before they come out."

"For me and John… This time around we were able to show them what we're capable of and we're really proud of that," Landsteiner, who was on the 2014 Olympics team, said. "And this team, I'm just proud of what we have all done. We've put in so much work together the last four years and we've been able to peak at the right time obviously. So I can't imagine it means any more than the world to any of us."

While they got the right medals, unfortunately, they did not get an upgrade on Delta Airlines.

"[Delta] our Olympic [curling] champions are flying home on Monday. Upgrades?!?" USA Curling asked.

"Hi, there. Congratulations, gold medal champions," Delta replied. "We are honored to be your ride back home! While we don't have any upgrades to offer, we look forward to seeing you on board. Thanks for flying with us!"

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