CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — Canada's mixed doubles curling team failed to reach the Olympic semifinals, a result that would have stunned fans of the sport just a decade ago,
South Korea's 9-5 victory Sunday night was the Canadians' fifth consecutive defeat and knocked them out of contention.
The result meant heartbreak for Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant, the married couple who entered the competition as favorites to qualify for the semifinals. They entered these Games under immense pressure to restore Canada’s curling dominance after waning success these past few winter Olympiads.
“It hurts,” Gallant said. “Yes, it’s an accomplishment to make it here but that wasn’t our goal. We wanted more.”
The loss was sure to demoralize Canada’s massive curling fan base, one that is uniquely knowledgeable and highly attentive to the sport.
Italy, the U.S. and Sweden joined already-qualified Britain in the semifinals, which take place Monday.
After losing 7-6 to Sweden earlier in the day, the usually stoic Peterman was visibly upset, wiping a tear from her cheek. Gallant bore an expression of exasperation, and the pair walked quickly through the press room without stopping much for questions.
Peterman was crying after the team's elimination.
“I’ll have to move out of the village,” she said.
She said she’d stay in Italy with the couple’s son and their families to watch Gallant compete in the men’s event.
Asked what would comfort them the most, Gallant said: “a hug from our son.”
In the round robin, the pair had early victories over Czechia, Norway and Italy. But that followed Friday with a loss to the U.S. and Saturday with consecutive defeats to Britain, currently ranked first, and Estonia, now at the bottom of the pack. Gallant attributed their losses Saturday to the team's struggle to adjust to ice conditions that were much quicker than the day before.
At the time, coach Scott Pfeifer said the team just needed to "get off to a better start, instead of playing catch-up all the time.”
Nevertheless, the Canadians faltered again Sunday morning with loss to Sweden's curling siblings, Isabella and Rasmus Wrana.
Canada will have more chances to medal in curling starting Feb. 11 and 12, when round robin for the men and women's events begin.
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AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
Canada's Brett Gallant and Jocelyn Peterman in action during the mixed doubles round robin phase of the curling competition against Sweden, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)
Canada's Brett Gallant and Jocelyn Peterman speak,during the mixed doubles round robin phase of the curling competition against Sweden, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are hanging near their records Wednesday as oil prices fall and ease the pressure on households and businesses worldwide.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.1% below its all-time high set the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 183 points, or 0.4%, as of 12:56 p.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.1% lower.
Stocks of companies with big fuel bills helped lead the way on hopes that lower oil prices will remove a big drag on their profits. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings climbed 5.7%, and United Airlines rallied 7.3%. Delta Air Lines rose 3.7% and is on track to set an all-time high.
The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil fell 4.1% to $95.48 after the ceasefire between the United States and Iran appeared to hold despite the U.S. military launching what it called “self-defense” strikes in southern Iran. A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude fell even more, 4.2%, to $89.69 on hopes that the United States and Iran can reach an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and allow oil tankers to exit the Persian Gulf for deliveries again.
Stocks have been able to run to records despite the painful inflation and uncertainty caused by high oil prices largely because companies have reported surprisingly strong profits for the start of 2026, and the forecast is for them to continue.
Bath & Body Works rallied 11.2%, and Abercrombie & Fitch climbed 11.8% after both reported bigger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. That's even as U.S. consumers continue to say they're feeling discouraged about the economy and inflation.
Lululemon Athletica rose 3.6% after reaching a deal with its founder, Chip Wilson, where it will add a former chief marketing officer of ESPN and a former co-CEO of On to its board of directors.
On the losing side of Wall Street was Dick's Sporting Goods, which dropped 4.9% despite delivering a profit for the latest quarter that edged past expectations. Analysts pointed to how much profit it wrung out of each $1 in revenue, which some called a bit weak.
Oil-and-gas stocks also sank, hurt by the dropping prices for crude. Exxon Mobil fell 1.4%, and Chevron slipped 0.8%. Halliburton dropped 3% to bring its gain for the year so far back toward 40%.
In the bond market, Treasury yields eased after falling oil prices took pressure off inflation. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 4.48% from 4.50% late Tuesday and from 4.67% roughly a week ago.
It’s a respite following recent gains for yields in bond markets worldwide, which threatened to slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and all kinds of other investments. High yields have already forced the average long-term U.S. mortgage rate to its most expensive level since last summer, and they could curtail companies’ borrowing to build the artificial-intelligence data centers that have supported the U.S. economy’s growth recently.
In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Europe and Asia. South Korea's Kospi was one of the world's best performers and jumped 2.3% after SK Hynix, which is a big beneficiary of the artificial-intelligence boom, soared 9.3%.
A day before, Micron Technology surged to become the latest Big Tech company to be worth more than $1 trillion on AI excitement. Its stock has more than tripled already in 2026, and analysts at UBS said Tuesday it could soar even more because of how fundamentally AI has improved demand for computer memory.
AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.
Trader Edward Curran, left, and specialist Meric Greenbaum, center, work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
A person looks at an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, May 25, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the foreign exchange rates at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer stands near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
