Canadian curler Marc Kennedy is walking back part of his reaction to a heated exchange with Sweden during a Winter Olympics match, saying he only regrets the language he used. The incident occurred during the Canada-Sweden round-robin game, where Kennedy took exception to being accused of cheating by Swedish curler Oskar Eriksson.
Eriksson believed Kennedy was "double-touching" the stone, meaning he touched it illegally after its release. This led to a profanity-laced response from Kennedy, which was picked up by on-ice microphones. "I don't regret defending myself or my teammates in that moment," Kennedy said. "I just probably regret the language I used".
World Curling issued a verbal warning to Canadian officials about Kennedy's language, stating that further inappropriate behavior could result in more serious penalties. They also clarified the rule about "double touching," specifying that curlers must release the stone using the handle before the hog line. Replays appeared to show Kennedy touching the stone with his finger after releasing it from the handle.
Despite the controversy, the Canadian team, skipped by Brad Jacobs, won the game 8-6. Kennedy stated, "I'm not going to apologize for defending ourselves against a cheating accusation". Curling Canada chief Nolan Thiessen acknowledged Kennedy's choice of words was poor but understandable in the heat of the moment.
