Canada may have won the gold medal in curling at the 2026 Olympics, but it wasn’t perfect. In fact, it became one of the most talked about events as the world divided into Sweden vs Canada. And while things seemed to have quietened down, the Swedes took revenge by winning the World Curling Championship. And on the back of that, a three-time Olympic superstar has drawn the curtain on a storied career.

That came via a social media post as Swedish icon Niklas Edin announced that he was retiring from professional curling. The 40-year-old put out a rather heartfelt statement, where he reflected on his journey from a “young foolish boy” to one of the greats of the sport.

“Dream of that young foolish boy came true…and then some!” Edin wrote on Instagram. “🤭🥹 Which leads me to make a tough and scary decision. To quit while ahead and have time to explore what else is out there! 👨🏼‍🦯”

He added, “To not forget anyone, I wanna thank everyone who’s been on board this incredible journey and helped steer the ship through storms and peaceful sunrises!”

“To all you fans who have been so kind and happy to follow our games closely! 🥹 To family and close ones cheering from afar 🥰 I hope you enjoyed the ride!? I sure did! 🤜🤛😎”

It marks the end of the road for one of curling’s greatest ever, and what a way to end it. After all, Edin goes out on the high, having won his eighth World Championship earlier this month. He became the only curler to skip men’s curling teams to eight such golds, and it’s not the only record he holds. The Swede has also set the record for most Olympic curling appearances, passing John Shuster.

Furthermore, Niklas Edin leaves as one of the world’s most decorated athletes. Aside from his record eight world championships, he also has eight European Championships. Not a record amount, but Edin adds to that with three Olympic medals, one of each colour, including a gold at the 2008 Games. He also won four Grand Slam Curling championships, becoming the first non-Canadian men’s skip to do so in the process.

However, along the way, injuries and surgeries nearly derailed his career, but Edin refused to let it define him. And while he may have retired from competing, he isn’t leaving the sport that he loves so dearly.

“Don’t worry tho, I’ll be close to the game, watching, coaching, commentating, and hopefully playing in the Rock League! 🕺🏼,” he added.

Yet despite him doing well at the 2026 World Curling Championships, Niklas Edin’s fifth Olympic appearance didn’t go to plan. Instead, the spotlight was on the ‘double touch’ controversy between Sweden and Canada. And to make matters worse, the Swedes crashed out in the round-robin itself.

However, even now, months later, that controversy still rages on. So much so that players on both sides continue to hold a grudge, especially Brad Jacobs.

Canada vs Sweden curling controversy still rages on months later

It’s been a little over two months since the 2026 Winter Olympics ended, but for some, it hasn’t really. That especially applies to Canada and Sweden’s curling teams after the latter called out the former for ‘double touching’. For the unversed, Swedish curler Oskar Eriksson accused Canadian curler Marc Kennedy of touching the curling stone twice.

In curling, the stone has to be released before the hog-line and can’t be touched after the curler leaves the handle. Thus, Sweden’s claim revolved around Kennedy touching the stone after letting go of the handle, which has sensors. That did not go down well with Canada, and Kennedy started berating his opponent on the spot.

It led to an immense divide in the curling world, with fans split between Canada and Sweden. Officials, however, saw nothing wrong with the incident, and the game went on, with Sweden eventually losing the round-robin. They were knocked out, Canada went on to win gold, and the dust somewhat settled, or so it seemed.

Because nearly two months later, it still rages, albeit between the players. So much so that during the inaugural season of the Rock League, Brad Jacobs revealed that he is still upset.

“They’re (Sweden) nothing to me,” Jacobs told The Athletic. “It’s quite simple, I act like they don’t exist. I’m very unhappy with all of their actions and things they’ve done recently.”

And unfortunately, that comes in the aftermath of a viral video of Eriksson. In it, the Swedish curler was demonstrating for the Swedish media outlet SVT just how much of a difference double-touching makes. The video went viral, the feud was reignited, and the battle rages on.

But as the debate continues to simmer, Niklas Edin’s decision feels like a clean break from the noise that followed his final Olympics. He leaves the sport on his own terms, with a legacy defined far more by his dominance than by the controversy that refused to fade.