Paralympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 Preview: Wheelchair Curling

The Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium will welcome the world’s top curlers as they compete for Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games medals. Originally built for the 1956 Winter Olympics — the first held in Italy — and home to the Opening Ceremony and figure skating events, the venue will again play a historic role by hosting the Closing Ceremony for the Paralympic Winter Games in March. It accommodates 3,500 spectators for competitions and 3,700 for ceremonies.



Wheelchair curling debuted internationally in the early 2000s and joined the Paralympics at the 2006 Torino Games with mixed team play. In Milano Cortina, a new format will make its Paralympic debut: mixed doubles wheelchair curling. This will feature teams of one man and one woman, adding a fresh dynamic with unique rules and athletes out to capture medals in this historic first.

Team USA qualified early in both categories, which made wheelchair curlers the first U.S. athletes selected for the 2026 Paralympic Winter Games. And while the rules are similar, there is no sweeping — unlike able-bodied curling — which puts a premium on precision.

Over the nearly 20-year Paralympic history of wheelchair curling, Team USA’s best finish at a Games came at Vancouver 2010, where it placed fourth — its closest brush with a medal. Since the sport’s 2006 debut, the U.S. has been a steady presence, showing gradual improvement in tighter games, stronger strategy and deeper rosters. After ups and downs, the team rebounded to fifth in 2022, signaling renewed momentum. Despite this progress, the U.S. is still seeking its first medal in the sport.



In mixed doubles, Steve Emt stands out as the team’s veteran and only three-time Paralympian. The 56-year-old, whose wife is Italian, always thought three Paralympics would be the perfect number and views competing in his wife’s home country as a nice way to close out his career.

Emt began wheelchair curling in 2013 and soon broke into the U.S. world championship roster, ultimately representing Team USA in eight world championships, highlighted by a fourth-place finish in 2021. He made his Paralympic debut in PyeongChang 2018 and returned for Beijing 2022, where the team rose to fifth place. In 2025, Emt and partner Laura Dwyer won the U.S. mixed doubles title and placed ninth at worlds, securing the United States’ qualification for the event’s debut at the Milan Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games.

Dwyer, 48, earned her spot — along with Emt — by winning the mixed doubles division at trials. She previously served as the first female alternate for the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games and later competed at the 2023–25 world championships in the mixed team event.


In the mixed team, Matthew Thums is the only returning Paralympian, having competed in Beijing in 2022. Just missing out on the semifinals to land in fifth-place, the 49-year-old accountant — who started curling at 35 — will be looking for that medal in Italy.

Also in the mixed team event, 52-year-old Oyuna Uranchimeg returns after competing on the Beijing squad that finished just off the podium. Born and raised in Mongolia, she went undefeated (6–0) with Thums in round-robin play at the 2024 World Wheelchair Mixed Doubles Championship before losing in the quarterfinals.


Round robin play starts on March 4. Medals will be awarded on:
March 11 (Gold and Broze Medal Games -- Mixed Doubles)
March 13 (Bronze Medal Game — Mixed Team)

March 14 (Gold Medal Game -- Mixed Team)