China maintains undefeated record in wheelchair curling mixed doubles at Milano Cortina Paralympics

The Milano Cortina 2026 curtain‑raiser for the inaugural wheelchair curling mixed doubles competition at the Winter Paralympics delivered drama and a statement, as China edged the duo from host nation Italy 8-7 on Thursday, remaining the only unbeaten side in the eight‑team round robin.

The Chinese pairing of Wang Meng and Yang Jinqiao headed into the contest in good form, following earlier wins over Japan and Latvia, but the Italians wasted no time firing up the home crowd with a three‑point opening end.

Wang and Yang rallied methodically. After picking up their first point, they successfully executed a late guarded stone play to steal two more while holding the hammer in the third end, knotting the score at 3-3.

Italy recovered to lead by three again, only for Wang and Yang to respond in the sixth with a pressure‑packed three‑point outburst, forcing an extra end.

Yang came up with the pivotal shot on his squad's penultimate throw in the added session, knocking out Italy's red. The home pair failed to respond effectively and actually nudged the opposing tandem's yellow stone into an even safer position. With the hosts unable to recover, China closed out the 8-7 victory.

The win improves China's record to 3-0 and sets up a clash later on Friday with the Republic of Korea.