Australia Wins First World Mixed Curling Championship Title

Australian mixed curling team members Tahli Gill and Dean Hewitt won the world championship title by defeating Sweden’s Therese Westman and Robin Ahlberg 8-4 in Switzerland. The event occurred overnight, marking Australia's first world championship gold medal in curling.

Hewitt did not qualify for the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics after losing in the semifinals of a qualification tournament in Canada in December. They were ranked eighth globally, with only the top seven teams plus host Italy automatically qualifying.

The remaining spots were determined at a tournament in Kelowna, Canada. Sweden won the gold medal at the 2026 Olympics with a different pairing, Isabella and Rasmus Wranå.

In the final match, the teams exchanged singles in the first two ends. Australia scored three points in the third end to lead 4-1, followed by Sweden scoring two in the fourth to make it 4-3. After the break, Australia stole a single point in the fifth end and scored three in their power play to secure the 8-4 win.

“It's amazing ... it feels really good," Gill told World Curling. "Oh gosh, I'm going to get emotional. It was really tough in December to just miss out on qualifying [for the Olympics]. So we just came out here and had lots of fun." Hewitt stated that the game was tight and that they played conservatively at first to learn the ice. Hewitt was named MVP of the tournament after the semifinals.”

The win comes 12 months after Gill and Hewitt earned a bronze medal at the 2025 World Championships in Fredericton, Canada. That was Australia's first global curling medal. They had risen to the number one global ranking before the Olympics but finished 15th at the 2024 world titles, affecting their qualification points.