World Curling has officially confirmed that the recent disappearance of two curling stones intended for the Milano Cortina Winter Paralympics is under investigation.
The high‑profile competition in Italy began Wednesday night with the opening matches of the first mixed‑doubles wheelchair event, but the incident was noticed earlier when officials, during a routine inventory, found the stones absent from the international Cortina curling arena.
“Regrettably, two stones have been taken from the venue,” a World Curling representative told the Press Association, adding that local police authorities are now looking into the matter.
Those stones were also slated for the Olympic mixed‑doubles competition; replacement stones, crafted from the same material and calibrated to identical weight and balance, have been supplied and will stand in for the missing granite as a temporary measure, carefully matching the original specifications.
ParalympicsGB were informed of the theft, but it did not disrupt the British pair Jo Butterfield and Jason Kean, who began their campaign with a 10‑7 loss to Estonia. The scheduled official opening of the Winter Paralympics takes place on Saturday, while the highly anticipated ceremony will be held in Verona on Friday evening.
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