Hammy McMillan: We have won it all...apart from Olympic gold

The curling quartet of Bruce Mouat, Grant Hardie, Hammy McMillan and Bobby Lammie won Olympic silver in Beijing and are bidding to go one better in Milan-Cortina

There is only one medal that currently escapes Team Mouat's clutches - but it's the one they want the most.

The curling quartet of Bruce Mouat, Grant Hardie, Hammy McMillan and Bobby Lammie roared to Olympic silver on debut at Beijing 2022, falling to Niklas Edin's Sweden at the final hurdle.

It hurt more than they let on at the time; forced to celebrate their silver when they felt like they had lost gold.

Almost four years on, they have won four consecutive European titles, two world crowns and made history as the first-ever rink to win four Grand Slam titles in one season. But now all roads lead to their pursuit of Olympic gold.

The clock now stands at 100 days to go until Milano Cortina 2026 and Team Mouat will return to the ice with eyes firmly set on finally climbing to the top step of the podium.

They know it won't be easy but it's the ultimate dream and McMillan believes it is in reach.

"It's the only medal that we don't have in our arsenal," he said. "We have Europeans, worlds, the Grand Slam titles and an Olympic silver but no Olympic gold.

"It took us a long time to probably come to terms with the fact that we actually won a silver and didn't lose a gold.

"In curling terms, you win the silver after a semi-final so after that gold medal match, everyone was buzzing that we had won Team GB's first medal in Beijing but we were all devastated because we had just lost our last game.

"To get the chance to go back again and hopefully this time stand on the top of the podium, I couldn't be happier.

"This is a tough competition, it's the Olympics. But we would be lying if we didn't say that we are going there for the gold."

Despite the consistent success over the last four years, there has been a constant shift in Team Mouat.

The quartet have developed, grown and matured as people, as athletes and as a team, knowing they could not stay stagnant if they wanted to continually challenge the best teams in the world.

A lot of things can change in four years, and it was important that they did too.

That meant that there were tough conversations behind the scenes as they looked at how they could continue to progress and further push their limits on the ice.

For McMillan, who plays lead in Team Mouat, those conversations reared their head in summer 2024 and are the main reason for such a successful past 12 months.

"We've all changed a lot. Even looking at April 2024, we came back from the World Championships with no medal and we feel like we threw away the bronze medal which was in our back pocket," he said.

"That was the catalyst for some really big and tough conversations which have then pushed us to the season that we've had this year.

"Being the first team to win four out of five Grand Slams, fourth European title and world number ones and that gold.

"Those conversations have brought us to now and that comes from maturity. The five of us with our coach at British Curling can do that and that's the difference.

"There are never any hard feelings, we all want to win and move on from that quickly."

When the Olympic Games come around in February 2026, curling will once again take to the limelight.

The sport turns into a viral experience at Games time, with fans sweeping the kitchen floor with their brooms and turning into experts on draws.

It's a brilliant thing to witness for those involved in the sport but something McMillan wishes could be replicated year around.

And with only two curling rinks in the UK outside of his home country of Scotland, the Olympian hopes Milano Cortina 2026 could be the difference in making curling mainstream.

"It's awesome that every four years curling does become big, but we wish it was every year," he said.

"The game over in Canada is massive and it's the equivalent of your golf and tennis there, and our highlights are on the TV.

"We really wish it kicks off over here for those Worlds and European moments. Imagine getting a Grand Slam over here.

"We're on the right track to help curling grow across the UK and not just in Scotland. We need more rinks around everywhere."

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