It’s been three months since Bruce Mouat returned home to Scotland with a second Olympic silver medal to add to his collection.
In those three months, much contemplation, reflection and decision-making has taken place, with the most significant decision shaping the next four years of Mouat’s life. It’s a decision that he needed time and space to make.
As Milan/Cortina 2026 came to a close, and having barely had the chance to catch his breath after the men’s curling final, or come to terms with having missed out narrowly on becoming Olympic champion, Mouat had a microphone thrust in his face and the question fired at him about whether he'd try again in four years’ time for Olympic glory? “I don’t know” came Mouat’s reply, with the Scot looking somewhat shell-shocked having barely had a second to process his Olympic result.
It’s understandable that Mouat needed more than a few minutes to decide what the next four years of his life should look like given the journey he’d just completed.
The skip of Britain’s men’s curling team headed to the Milan/Cortina Winter Olympics earlier this year as one of Team GB’s strongest favourites for gold.
Having won silver in 2022, and having established his rink as the best on the planet after dominating the season leading into the Winter Olympics, Mouat admitted he and his teammates, Grant Hardie, Hammy McMillan, Bobby Lammie and alternate Kyle Waddell, were in Italy with their sights set on one thing, and one thing only; an Olympic gold medal. Becoming Olympic champion was the only gap in their résumés and they appeared, given their form as they landed on Italian soil, on course to rectify this.
The Olympic experience was, though, a rollercoaster of epic proportions for Mouat.
Having finished in fourth place alongside Jen Dodds in the mixed doubles (for the second consecutive Winter Olympics), Mouat had a quick turnaround before the men’s event began.
Despite being the gold medal favourites before a stone was thrown, inconsistent form by Team Mouat sent them to the verge of elimination in the group stages.
Having had to rely on results elsewhere going their way, Team Mouat got their first slice of luck and having sneaked into the semi-finals, defeated Switzerland to reach the final.
Olympic gold was, ultimately, to remain elusive, though, with the Scots losing to Canada, forcing Mouat and his compatriots to settle for silver for the second Winter Olympics running.
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Second step on the Olympic podium may have been a position they’d occupied before but, says Mouat, the feelings this time around differed considerably to those he experienced in 2022.
“The way that we won our silver medals has been different at both Olympics,” reflects 31-year-old Mouat from Edinburgh.
“2022 was tough because it was the first time we'd been in that position and, this time, I was gutted that we didn't come away with a gold medal but I’m really proud that we managed to get to the final. And the year, it's been easier to cope with the aftermath of the Olympics because coming back home and having such a buzz in the country about curling was just so exciting.
“It was just so good that curling got its moment in the spotlight and I was really proud that I had played a part in that.
“At the Olympics, we had absolutely no awareness of how many people were watching us, which was probably a good thing. If we'd been told that 5.5 million people would watch our men's final, we wouldn’t have believed it so it was cool to find out that we'd brought curling to so many people's attention.
“After coming home, we were so busy with people wanting time with us and doing talks and going to different sporting events and making appearances so there were just so many opportunities, which was a big distraction.”
Upon his return from Milan/Cortina, Mouat headed almost immediately to Canada to play in the recently-formed Rock League. And so it was only after his stint in Rock League concluded that Mouat was able to look forward to the 2030 Winter Olympics and decide if he has it in him to dive into yet another gruelling Olympic cycle. In the end it was not, he admits, a difficult question to answer.
“Getting asked straight after the final at Milan/Cortina if we were going to go again at the 2030 Olympics was far too soon - at that point, I had no idea because I'd literally just finished this four year cycle.
“The thing about doing an Olympic cycle is it's not just about us, the players. It's about your family, your friends, the people around you. And there's the emotional side of sport that people probably don't see or don't realise. So continuing or not wasn’t a decision I could make alone. But, upon reflection, I know I'm not finished with this sport. I still love curling and I want to continue to the next Olympics. I want to learn from the experiences I've had in Beijing (in 2022) and Cortina (in 2026) and take that forward.
“I'm still really passionate about curling and I still really want to get that gold medal at the Olympic Games.”
Mouat and his teammates have been given “as much time off over the summer as they want” and so it’s likely it’ll be the autumn before the Edinburgh man returns to the ice. He remains in the gym - it helps keep him sane - and while he's certainly not looking towards the next Olympics yet, he's already given a thought to next season and maintaining the dominance that his rink has established. And while he's reluctant to speak for any of his teammates, he's confident the quartet will continue together.
“I'm definitely not one of those people who’s looking so far ahead to the next Olympics,” he says.
“Soon, we’ll figure out what next season looks like and while we don't need to make the decision right now about committing to the next Olympics, I like what I'm hearing right now from the other guys in terms of continuing.”
