Jen Dodds may already know what it feels like to be crowned Olympic champion, but the curler is relishing every Olympic first still to come her way at Milano Cortina 2026.
The 33-year-old was part of Team Muirhead's gold medal-winning rink on the final day of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, becoming Olympic champion at the first time of asking.
But when she returns to the pinnacle of sport next February, it will be with a new-look team, in a new-look city, and with friends and family finally in the crowd.
With the retirements of Eve Muirhead and Vicky Wright post-Beijing 2022, as well as a host of changes in set-up, Dodds has joined forces with skip Rebecca Morrison's team for her second Games.
It means that the Edinburgh-born athlete will have the unique honour of being the only defending Olympic champion in Team GB's curling squad, a title she is relishing in a new environment.
"It's a great honour to be going back as an Olympic champion," she said. "It's a pretty cool feeling.
"But what's so nice is that I might have been there before and done it, but there are going to be so many firsts for me as well.
"Beijing 2022 was a Covid Olympics and there was no crowd and so to have my friends and family there is so exciting as I didn't experience that last time.
"And of course I would love to have my old team with me as well but obviously life happens and I'm now with Team Morrison."
Dodds was made aware that she will be the only defending champion by former skip and Team GB Chef de Mission Muirhead herself.
There are strong parallels between the two ahead of Milano Cortina, with Muirhead the most experienced name and already an Olympic medallist when her rink took to the ice in Beijing.
Dodds will now claim that role in Team Morrison, with the rest of the squad made up entirely of Olympic debutants.
And the curler is keen to use her experience to help the team in any way possible.
"When I was in Beijing, we got a lot of that advice from Eve as she had been to three Games before and it was my first experience," she said.
"That was a really big help for me so if I can do that this time round and almost pay it forward, that would be such a goal for me.
"So it is a little different from last time and I am taking a little bit more of a leadership role off ice and on.
"It's all about helping the team as much as I can and if my experience can help us succeed, I would love to do it."
Team Morrison qualified a quota spot for Team GB through their sixth place finish at the 2025 World Curling Championships.
It's has been a rollercoaster couple of years for the squad as they try to find their footing on the international scene.
But Dodds is confident that an early selection and their 2025 consistency will be the key to tackling a fresh challenge head on.
Read more: Team GB's Curling Teams for Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games
"It's been exciting with a change in team over this cycle," she said.
"It feels fresh with new challenges and new experiences but we've been together for three years now and I feel like that we do have that good foundation and consistency now.
"That has been a real key for us in the last two years and I think it really paid off at the back end of this season."
Where there has been so much change, there is also home comfort for Dodds who will take to the stage alongside childhood friend and men's curling skip Bruce Mouat as well in Milano Cortina.
The pair finished fourth in the inaugural mixed doubles event at Beijing 2022 and have battled through a difficult couple of years since to return to the podium with silver at the 2025 World Championships.
Back for a second Games in the event Dodds admitted that she only has eyes for silverware alongside Mouat this time around.
"That fourth place for us was really disappointing but we didn't have time to think about it, you just had to park it and get on with your other event," she said.
"It feels like there's a little bit of unfinished business.
"This time we would love to get a medal, that is our goal.
"It's been a great three and a half years with him again and we have such a good bond. We didn't have the best of seasons after the Games and we have had those tough conversations but we know that everything we say is the best for the team.
"But we've had a lot of learnings in the last year and it's looking promising.
"I have a lot of confidence going into both disciplines."
Sportsbeat 2025