Canada defeats South Korea to open Olympic women's curling campaign

Jennifer Jones ran the table in her last appearance at the Winter Olympics.

For her long-awaited return to the Games, she picked up where she left off.

Jones opened her round-robin schedule with a 12-7 victory over South Korea's EunJung Kim on Thursday night at the Ice Cube.

The Canada skip, who won Olympic gold at the Sochi Games in 2014 with a perfect 11-0 record, pulled away with a three-ender in the seventh to break a 6-6 tie. Jones iced the win with a steal of two in the 10th end.

"I'm really happy with how we performed for our first game out there," said Jones after the match. "I thought we made a couple of mistakes but we made a lot of big shots to win the game."

WATCH l Extended Highlights: Jones leads Canadian rink over South Korea:

Curlers must sweep strategically to use the ice to direct their stones

3 years ago

Duration 0:51

CBC analysts Mike Harris and Joanne Courtney explain how sweeping affects the pebbled ice surface.

"It's going to be really hard in this field to go through undefeated [like in 2014]. Our goal is to try to make the semi, no matter the position we are in, and just try to make a bunch of shots along the way and give ourselves a chance."

Jones is joined by Jocelyn Peterman, Dawn McEwen and Kaitlyn Lawes, who played a tight match against the Korean squad, led by skip Kim Eun-jung.

"That's typical Team Jones fashion I think," said vice Kaitlyn Lawes. "Usually we bring it down to the wire, so what a way to start the Olympics."

'Soak up the moment'

"I love my team so much and to experience all these once-in-a-lifetime moments with these amazing human beings, I'm so privileged," said Jones. "I just want to go out there and soak up the moment and just enjoy it with the girls."

"Just went out there and soaked up the atmosphere," Jones said. "Sliding over those Olympic rings is just honestly a dream come true.

WATCH | How sweeping affects the ice in curling:

Team Gushue’s return to the Olympics has been years in the making

3 years ago

Duration 2:27

With two members of Brad Gushue’s curling team going to the Olympics for the first time, the others who recall Torino and their gold medal fondly look to give the first time Olympians that feeling.

In other women's curling results, Great Britain's Eve Muirhead dumped defending champion Anna Hasselborg of Sweden 8-2.

China's Han Yu dropped a 7-5 decision to Switzerland's Silvana Tirinzoni and American Tabitha Peterson beat Denmark's Madeleine Dupont 7-5.

Canada was shut out of the team medals for the first time at the 2018 PyeongChang Games in South Korea.

John Morris and Kaitlyn Lawes won mixed doubles gold that year in the discipline's Olympic debut. Morris and Rachel Homan did not make the playoffs this year.

Canada's women's curling team will get back on the ice against Japan on Friday at 1 a.m. ET (CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports app, CBC Gem).

WATCH | Full match replay - Canada vs. South Korea:

WATCH | Team Gushue's return to the Olympics has been years in the making: