Canada's wheelchair curlers beat China 4-3 to claim their fourth Paralympic gold. But the Milan Cortina Games are struggling with unseasonable warmth that's wrecking snow events, and American Jake Adicoff just became the first openly gay male cross-country skier to win Winter Paralympic gold.

Canadian Curlers Return to the Top

Canada's wheelchair curlers are back on top, grabbing their fourth Paralympic gold. They edged out China, the defending champions, in a tight 4-3 contest. The decisive moment came in the eighth end when skipper Mark Ideson executed a perfectly judged hit and roll with the final stone, earning a single, crucial point.

Both teams came in hot. China's only defeat in the round robin stage had come at the hands of Canada, who remained unbeaten throughout the tournament. The arena was packed. Fans from both countries were loud, making it a tense match.

Early on, Ideson made a gutsy call. In the opening end, after both teams had removed each other's stones, Ideson had the final stone with the house empty.

Instead of playing for a single point, he chose to send his stone out of bounds, blanking the end and retaining the hammer for the second. It worked—China was suddenly on the back foot.

Both teams played it safe, afraid to hand the other side a big score. Canada held a narrow 2-1 lead at the halfway mark. In the fifth end, China's Li Nana levelled the score with a precise draw into the house after a successful takeout.

Then, in end six, Wang Haitao's double hit and roll seemed to give China an advantage, but Ideson responded, sealing a point with his final stone.

The seventh end got messy—stones everywhere, and nobody knew what would happen. Jon Thurston, who had gone viral earlier in the week for an impressive hit and roll, executed a double hit that looked to have potentially decided the outcome. But China called a timeout, and Zhang Qiang fought back with another double knock, claiming a single point and ensuring the final end would be decisive.

The Chinese team let out raw, guttural roars with every shot—clearly trying to get in Canada's head. Canada's vocal supporters cheered every shot, whether a draw or an out-of-bounds stone, adding to the electrifying atmosphere.

Li started the final end with a defensive double guard. Any Canadian shot would need perfect touch. Ina Forrest rose to the challenge with her first stone, only for Zhang to then narrowly edge her out. Thurston and Wang exchanged blows without affecting the score, leaving Ideson and Wang to contest the crucial final shots. Wang's first stone fell short, leaving Ideson with the opportunity to secure the win.

Climate Challenges Impact Snow Events

While curlers celebrated, the Milan Cortina Games ran into an unexpected problem: it was too warm. Cortina d’Ampezzo experienced daytime temperatures reaching double digits in Celsius, causing snow to disappear rapidly from the hillsides. Meltwater was pouring down the slopes—the opposite of what March usually brings.

Mastheads

No fresh snow since the Paralympics started. The damage has been real. Last weekend, the snowboard course at the Cortina park, situated about 1,450 metres above sea level, required a redesign the night before competition. It had become too dangerous in training due to snow melting and then refreezing into ice overnight.

The redesign didn't help much—athletes crashed all over the place the next day. British athlete Davy Zyw was among those hospitalized with broken ribs. In the men’s seated downhill event, 11 of 23 starters failed to finish, with conditions widely described as “slush.” US para snowboarder Amy Purdy voiced the concerns of many athletes in a TikTok post, stating, “I don’t believe that the Paralympics should be happening right now.”

The Winter Paralympics haven't happened before mid-March in the 2000s. It's not about when they scheduled it.

It's about the climate getting warmer. Climate Central found that Cortina's average March temperature has jumped 2.5 degrees Celsius over the past 50 years.

By 2050, 52 of 93 potential Winter Olympic sites might still work. But only 22 would be safe in March. The squeeze everyone predicted is here—and the Paralympics are getting hit first.

The IPC was asked if they could move the Paralympics to colder months like January or February. They said it probably won't work.

A spokesperson explained, “We know that climate change is affecting the world, and that’s why we’re organising, committing ourselves and increasing our sustainability efforts. But changing the winter sport calendar is easier said than done.” The IPC noted that these earlier months are when winter sport federations hold major competitions, including World Cups and World Championships, and media rights holders have other significant sporting events reaching their climax, such as the NFL season.

Snowmaking machines are everywhere in winter sports now. Despite the mess, organizers and athletes praised the course prep work. Weirdly, they made less artificial snow than expected because there was decent natural snowfall before and during the Olympics. They still needed 1.8 million cubic metres of snow for both events—down from the 2.4 million they'd expected.

Adicoff's Historic Wins for Team USA

Away from the curling sheet and melting snow, American Jake Adicoff made history at the Milan Cortina Games. The vision-impaired athlete became the first openly gay American male to win a Winter Paralympic gold medal, achieving this feat in the sprint classic race on Tuesday. His second victory followed on Wednesday in the interval start classic.

Adicoff then added to his medal haul as he helped the United States secure gold in the Para cross-country mixed relay. Instead of his characteristic bow, which he often performs for fans, family, and friends, Adicoff was tackled to the ground by his jubilant teammate Oksana Masters after their victory on Saturday.

“It was initially a hug, and then she kind of put all her weight into it, and then all of a sudden I was on the ground,” Adicoff recounted. “She goes crazy, she’s got a lot of passion. She takes that to the race course and to the celebrations afterwards.” Masters, the most decorated American Winter Paralympian, extended her record to 23 Paralympic medals with this win. Joshua Sweeney and Sydney Peterson were also part of the victorious US team.

Masters herself shared her excitement. “I’m a very passionate, aggressive person, and I was just so excited. I was so happy for Jake, because I know he’s chasing that clean sweep in cross-country skiing,” she said. “To be able to do my part for him, it just felt so good that he is on his way to achieving his dreams.”

Adicoff, who has no vision in his right eye and limited vision in his left due to contracting chicken pox in utero, found the relay particularly enjoyable. “The relay is really fun because you actually get to watch your teammates,” he noted.

“That’s my favorite part of the day. And getting tackled by Oksana at the finish.”

He enjoys finding new ways to celebrate his victories, having taken a bow at the finish line after his second individual gold and again at the podium ceremony. Fans have been spotted wearing hats adorned with Adicoff’s name. “I’m trying to think of something new every time,” he said. “You’ve got to keep it fresh. You got to keep new ones coming. If anyone has any ideas, let me know.”

Adicoff will have another opportunity to celebrate when he competes Sunday in the 20-kilometre interval start free race, his final event at Milan Cortina. He is believed to be one of five openly gay athletes representing the United States at these Games, having not been openly gay during previous Paralympics.

Adicoff had previously helped the US win the mixed relay at the 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympic Games, making a comeback from retirement after the 2018 Pyeongchang Games, where he earned a silver medal in the 10km classic. He also secured two silver medals four years ago in Beijing. Masters, meanwhile, won her fourth gold medal at Milan Cortina, the most of any athlete so far, bringing her total medal count across Winter and Summer Paralympic Games to 23.

Related Articles

Jake Adicoff grew up in Sun Valley, Idaho, starting Alpine skiing at age five before his parents transitioned him to cross-country skiing when they realized his vision impairment would hinder his performance in Alpine events.

This article was created with AI assistance.