Fortius: From rock bottom to the first gold medal on the podium!

Fortius Curling Women

Feb. 12 17:05 Sweden
Feb. 13, 3:05 Denmark
Feb. 14th 17:05 Switzerland
Feb. 15th 3:05 U.S.A.

Four winters ago, “Fortius”, which had been at rock bottom, finally reached the Olympic stage for the first time – in September ’21, in Beijing.

In September 2009, the team suffered an upset loss to Rocco Solare in the final match for the Beijing Olympics, and in December of the same year, the contract with the main sponsor was terminated. For a time, the team had “zero” sponsors, and the members were struggling to make ends meet by cutting into their savings and using crowdfunding to fund their activities. ……

The turning point came in ’23, when second skipper Sayaka Yoshimura (34) left the team for maternity leave and was replaced by second skipper Yuna Kotani (27). The team’s shot options and tactical range were expanded, and the team’s level was quickly raised. After Yoshimura’s return, the team evolved into a team so layered that every member could play a leading role,” said curling writer Soichiro Takeda.

Yoshimura’s persistence, which Takeda describes as “hating to lose,” was the force that enabled the team to win the national team’s deciding match in September 2013. The number of sponsors has increased to 26, and the team now inspires itself by publicly declaring that it will win the gold medal.

The key to their success will be An Na Omiya (36), who is at the top of her class in terms of shot consistency compared to the rest of the world. Their first match is against Sweden, the bronze medalist at the Beijing Olympics, but if they win, their hopes of winning a medal should grow.

The girls have overcome adversity, and we can hardly wait to see them rise to the top on the ice.

From the February 20/27, 2026 issue of “FRIDAY