A sporting career that has yielded 25 major medals for Eve Muirhead is over.
Britain’s most successful ever curler has no shortage of highlights to look back on as she contemplates the next chapter of her life.
Speaking exclusively to Courier Sport, she picks out her five top ones.
1 – Family and competition
It was hard enough to get it down to five so don’t ask me to rank them in order.
This list is just chronological!
Back to when I was 13 or 14, learning the sport and starting to do well locally was such a magical time.
Me, my brother Glen, my dad, Dave Hay and Finlay Hay went from Division Four in Perth all the way to Division One, eventually winning it.
Dad and Dave would have alternate weeks playing with the three of us.
Playing with dad and Dave – nobody’s as competitive as them and both would go on to coach me – set me up for my career.
You’d have the likes of the Smiths and other great curlers playing on the sheet next to you.
Family and competition is what curling’s always been about for me.
2 – The dream end to juniors
Winning four World Juniors is still a record and my last gold was in Perth.
Dewar’s Centre holds so many special memories so to finish that stage of my career on home ice, beating Canada in front of friends and family was just perfect.
It was jam-packed. People couldn’t get tickets and the atmosphere was amazing.
3 – So much more than ‘just’ a bronze
At the 2017 World Championships in Japan, Team Hasselborg were the big favourites in the bronze medal game and had beaten us twice already that week – the round-robin and the page play-off game.
They were probably at their peak back then.
The shot I played in the ninth end put us in front of them for the first time in the whole tournament.
You could say ‘it was only a bronze’ but it was such a hard-fought one and I’m really proud of it.
4 – A Muirhead Olympics
To be able to say you’ve been to an Olympics with your two brothers (and mum and dad watching) is pretty special.
From the official announcement and photocall with the sheep at the Highland Show in Ingliston to everything that went after, there are so many happy memories from PyeongChang 2018.
Personally, I was devastated to finish fourth after losing a tight semi-final then not pulling off my final shot for bronze.
The boys would have wanted a medal but fifth was nothing to be ashamed of for them, that’s for sure.
Glen and Thomas Muirhead are hoping to spin wool into gold. 🐑🏅
With their sights set on curling at the Olympic Games, the brothers balance a farming career with medal aspirations. 🥌 pic.twitter.com/3d9pKsn8UR
— Athlete365 (@Athlete365) February 20, 2019
It’s such a huge shame that four boys of the boys in that team aren’t even playing anymore.
Thomas was just 23 in 2018 and should have had his best years in front of him.
Something has gone wrong in British Curling for that to happen.
5 – The big one at last
This one is no surprise!
It was the fairytale ending after having had three other attempts at winning the medal every curler wants.
The semi-final match (against Team Hasselborg again) was the standout game.
To go four down after end one and win is pretty unheard of at that level.
They fight to the end 🇬🇧💪
Wild celebrations as Eve Muirhead's rink complete a comeback win over Sweden to guarantee Team GB a medal.#Beijing2022 | @discoveryplusUK | #TeamGB pic.twitter.com/6gpsJw16hg
— Eurosport (@eurosport) February 18, 2022
In fact, I think the chances were actually zero per cent when people behind the scenes on the GB programme looked at them afterwards.
We’ve upped that percentage a bit!
The final didn’t provide the same drama.
The semi will get talked about for a long, long time as one of those ‘once in a generation games’.
It was our ‘Stone of Destiny’ moment.
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