The normally calm, precise sport of curling has brought controversy to the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics. In just the last week, when the tournament began, Canada has been facing cheating accusations, sparking heated arguments and a spotlight on the sport.

The dispute revolves around touching a granite stone. In curling, players have to slide a roughly 40-pound stone across the ice toward a target called the “house,” releasing the stone by its handle before it crosses the “hog line.” Touching any part of the stone after it is released is illegal. But touching the granite body, which has a larger effect on the movement of the stone, is a more serious violation. Since curling results are often decided by inches, any added adjustments can change the outcomes greatly. That’s why, if the stone is touched, officials typically remove it from play.

The controversy arose during a men’s round-robin match between Sweden and Canada. Swedish player Oskar Eriksson accused Canadian Marc Kennedy of illegally touching the stone after releasing it, known as a “double touch.” Sweden claimed to have footage showing the contact. However, curling does not use video replay to overturn calls. Canada won the match 8-6, but the cheating accusation left the opposing teams in a heated confrontation between the opposing teams.

Officials monitored following plays but did not find any violations during the match. Following the dispute, Canada received a verbal warning after Kennedy responded with “f— off.” Eriksson defended himself saying, “We want a game that is as sportsmanlike, honest and clean as possible.” When asked about the controversy after, Kennedy commented, “If somebody said to you, ‘Hey, do you double-touch all the time?’ I honestly… couldn’t even tell you if I do or not.”

This was not the end of the accusations against Canada. Similar accusations arose during the women’s round-robin match between Canada and Switzerland. In that game, officials ruled that a “double touch” had occurred and removed the stone from play, a very rare occurrence at the Olympic level. Canadian player Rachel Homan strongly argued against the call saying, “I don’t understand the call. I’ll never understand it. We’ve never done that.” The decision had a direct impact on the match given that Switzerland defeated Canada 8-7 in an extra tiebreak period.

These accusations have brought a higher level of scrutiny to the Olympic competition. In a later match, officials ruled that there had been a “double touch” by Great Britain and the stone was removed from play. Many spectators are arguing that these calls have come because of the criticism regarding the treatment of Canada and not as a standard rule enforcement.

Teams, including Switzerland, voiced concerns about Canada’s curling team. World Curling, the international governing body for the sport of curling, responded to the situation but said that match results would not be changed and the lack of video replays would also continue. While no match results have been overturned, the controversy may influence the future of how curling is officiated.