Switzerland top the round robin table at the World Curling Championships in Ottawa, Canada, Scotland take second seed

The World Men’s Curling Championships in Ottawa saw Switzerland finish top of the round-robin stage with an impressive 11-0 record. Benoit Schwarz’s rink secured a comfortable 8-5 victory over defending champions Sweden on the final day to seal their position at the top of the standings. The Swiss team will now face the winner of Sweden and Canada in the semi-finals.

Scotland also progressed directly to the semi-finals after finishing in second place behind Switzerland. Bruce Mouat’s rink secured a comfortable 10-4 win over New Zealand in their final round-robin match, ensuring they finished with 10 wins out of 12 matches. They will now face the winners of a play-off between Norway and Italy in the semi-finals.

Canada secured the fourth seed with an 8-5 victory over Sweden in their final match of the round-robin stage. They also beat Turkey 9-5 earlier in the day. Canada were the runners-up in last year’s tournament and will be hoping to go one better this time around.

Sweden, who started the tournament with seven straight wins, finished the round-robin stage on a rough stretch, with two wins and three losses since. They will now face a play-off against Canada for a place in the semi-finals.

Elsewhere, Germany finished their World Championship performance with an 8-5 victory over Japan, while Norway secured their spot in the qualification round with a late 6-4 win over Turkey.

The semi-finals promise to be exciting, with Switzerland facing the winner of Sweden and Canada, while Scotland awaits the winners of Norway and Italy. The Swiss side will be hoping to continue their unbeaten run and secure their first men’s world title since 2015.

Scotland will be looking to build on their impressive round-robin stage and secure their first men’s world title since 2009. Mouat and his team will be hoping to avenge their defeat to Sweden in last year’s Olympic final and the 2021 final.