Germany Triumphs Over Scotland in European Curling Final

Scotland’s men’s team failed to secure a fourth consecutive European Curling Championship title, as Germany clinched a 9-7 victory on the decisive final stone. This outcome meant Bruce Mouat, who had previously won the European title in 2018, 2021, 2022, and 2023, and his team missed out on extending their winning streak. The rink led by Bruce Mouat established an early 2-0 advantage after the first end. However, Marc Muskatewitz’s German side had reversed the score to 4-2 by the conclusion of the third end. The Scottish team managed to draw level in the subsequent end, and the lead then exchanged hands over the course of the next three ends before the Germans moved ahead to an 8-6 score. The deficit for Scotland was narrowed to a single point during the penultimate end. Ultimately, Muskatewitz guided his team to claim the gold medal in the 10th end. Mouat commented on the match, stating, “I thought we were playing well enough to win the championship, but sometimes you don’t have a great game.” He added, “It’s just disappointing that it happened in the gold medal match.” Reflecting on his personal performance, Mouat remarked, “I never performed as well as I was hoping to. I missed a few line calls and caused some tough misses for the guys, but we’re going to try to bounce back.” He also shared his perspective on his career achievements: “If someone had told me that by the age of 30 I would have four gold medals and a silver at the Europeans, I would have been very impressed. But in the moment it’s hard to get over how gutted we’re feeling that we didn’t get the fifth gold.” The Scottish contingent comprised Grant Hardie, Bobby Lammie, Hammy McMillan, and alternate Kyle Waddell. Conversely, the German rink included Benjamin Kapp, Felix Messenzehl, Johannes Scheuerl, and alternate Mario Trevisiol, alongside Muskatewitz. Mouat, an Olympic silver medalist, had also previously triumphed in the 2018 European final and participated in this year’s World Championships.