
In an interview with the Keystone-SDA news agency, skip Silvana Tirinzoni talks about the reasons for her defeat in the final at the World Championships in Uijeongbu and also looks ahead to the Winter Games.
The Swiss curlers led by skip Silvana Tirinzoni won a World Championship medal in South Korea for the sixth time in a row. After four gold medals, they lost to Canada in the final for the second time in a row, this time 3:7.
However, the season is not yet over for the CC Aarau team. The last Grand Slam tournament is scheduled for April 8 in Toronto. After that, it's time for a vacation before preparations begin for the Winter Olympics next February in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. An Olympic medal is still missing from the impressive palmarès of Tirinzoni and Alina Pätz, who have formed a team since 2018.
Silvana Tirinzoni, just like a year ago, you lost to Canada and skip Rachel Homan in the final. Why wasn't it enough for gold this time?
"We certainly made a few more mistakes than before. That doesn't work against this team. They exploit mistakes in cold blood. Despite everything, we were able to keep the game close until the eighth end. If we had made the last stone there, we would have had a good chance of winning the game. The two stones stolen by the Canadians broke our back."
You have never been able to beat Rachel Homan at the World Championships. What makes it so difficult against her?
"They're just incredibly strong, they hardly ever lose games. They've been in top form for two years now, every team has extreme difficulty against them. We've also won against them, just not at world championships. Their greatest strength is their takeouts. Tactically, there's not much you can do against them. There are no tactics against great stones, because it's not possible to prevent everything. If they play a double takeout despite having a guard, then you have to accept that."
Apart from the two defeats against Canada, there have only been victories at this World Cup. So it should still be a successful tournament?
"Yes, you have to see it that way. Of course we're still very disappointed at the moment, but our performances were right throughout the week. We fought for every stone. Although we didn't play our best in the final, we gave it our all and tried with passion to bring the game home. It just wasn't enough."
What role did tiredness play after the intensive days?
"None at all. Of course we were tired, but so were the Canadians. The adrenaline kept us awake and gave us a lot of energy."
Before the World Championships, you strengthened the coaching team with Mirjam Ott, who has twice won silver at the Winter Olympics. What did she bring you specifically?
"She's a legend. I really liked having her in the background. She brought a certain looseness and is an incredibly funny person. She was good for us all round."
European Championship gold and now World Championship silver, but there have also been a few setbacks, such as 3rd place at the Swiss Championships. How would you sum up the season so far?
"The performances at the World Championships were certainly excellent apart from two or three stones in the final. The European Championships were top. We can certainly be extremely proud of that. Our performances in the other tournaments were mixed."
A medal at the Winter Games is still missing from your impressive palmarès. How are you looking ahead to this highlight?
"The teams on the podium will be the ones that are mentally strongest and bring everything together this week. Even against supposedly weak opponents, it's not enough to let up a little. It's amazing how the standard has risen over the last few years, it's higher across the board than ever before. Hopefully we'll be ready for this challenge."