Eve Muirhead (born 22 April 1990) is a Scottish formercurler from Perth and theskip of theBritish Olympic Curling team.[2] Muirhead and the GB team became Olympic champions at the2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, having previously won the bronze medal at the2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.[3][4]
As skip of the Scotland team, Muirhead won the2011 European Championships in Moscow, the2013 World Championships in Riga, the2017 European Championships in St. Gallen and the2021 European Championships in Lillehammer. She is also a four-timeWorld Junior Champion (2007, 2008, 2009 and 2011). A four-time Olympian, she represented Great Britain at theWinter Olympics inVancouver 2010,Sochi 2014,Pyeongchang 2018 andBeijing 2022 in which she was chosen as one of Great Britain's flag bearers at theOpening Ceremony.[5] In Sochi, she became the youngest-ever skip, male or female, to win an Olympic medal. She curls out of the Dunkeld Curling Club based inPitlochry.[3]
She announced her retirement on 11 August 2022.[6]
She currently coaches theFay Henderson rink.[7]
Muirhead was born inPerth,Scotland, and first appeared on the world curling scene at the2007 World Junior Curling Championships inEveleth, Minnesota, as a third with skipSarah Reid, and won the gold medal.
At the 2008 Scottish junior women's championship Muirhead skipped her own team, winning all games and thus qualifying for the next junior world championship.[8] Muirhead was skip for the Scottish team at the2008 World Junior Curling Championships inÖstersund, beating Sweden (skipped byCecilia Östlund) 12–3 in the final.[9]
Muirhead returned to the2009 World Junior Curling Championships in Vancouver to play at theVancouver Olympic Centre, the future site of the2010 Winter Olympics. She faced the hometown Canadian team led byKaitlyn Lawes in the final and defeated them 8–6. Thus Muirhead repeated as the world junior champion skip and won her third world junior championship in a row.
In December 2009, Muirhead was awarded the BBC Scotland Young Sports Personality of the year for her achievements in curling.[10]
In 2010, Muirhead was too preoccupied with the Olympics to play at the World Juniors, but she was back at the2011 World Junior Curling Championships in her native Scotland. Muirhead won the gold medal at the World Juniors for an unprecedented fourth time in her career. She beat Canada'sTrish Paulsen by a score of 10–3 in the final.[11]
Muirhead was selected asskip for theGreat Britain Women's curling team at the2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada. After winning only three of nine round robin matches with cliffhanger losses to the United States, Denmark and Canada, the team failed to qualify for the semi-finals. She also broke her broom on the ice, a major curling faux pas.[12]
Muirhead continued asskip for the Great Britain Women's curling team at the2014 Winter Olympics inSochi, Russia. She won the Bronze Medal as the Great Britain team skip after beating Switzerland 6–5 in the Bronze Medal play-off,[13] making her the youngest ever skip to win an Olympic medal.[14]
Muirhead was skip for the British team at the2018 Winter Olympics inPyeongChang, South Korea.[15] She led her team to a 6–3 robin record, which qualified Great Britain for a semifinal match-up against Sweden'sAnna Hasselborg rink. She lost to the Swedes in the semifinal, putting Team GB in the bronze medal game against Japan'sSatsuki Fujisawa team. She lost this game as well, settling for fourth place.
Muirhead was once again selected as skip for the Women's curling team at the2022 Winter Olympics inBeijing, China.[16] On the last day of events she led her team to a 10–3 win over Japan, winning her first ever gold Olympic medal (Team GB's only gold medal of the Games).[4]
Muirhead won the silver medal as the Scottish team skip at the2010 Ford World Women's Curling Championship after losing 8–6 to Germany in the final, which went to an extra end. The team finished the round robin matches in 3rd place with an 8–3 record, then advanced to the final by winning the 3 vs. 4-page playoff against Sweden and the semi-final against Canada, both games in 8 ends and on the same day. Her teammates were thirdKelly Wood, secondLorna Vevers, leadAnne Laird and alternateSarah Reid.[17] Muirhead's rink did not win the Scottish championship in 2011, but she was invited to play as Scotland's alternate at the2011 Capital One World Women's Curling Championship, where the team finished 9th. The team did win the Scottish championship in 2012 and would finish 6th at the2012 Ford World Women's Curling Championship. She won the Scottish championship for a fourth time in 2013. The team would go on to play at the2013 World Women's Curling Championship, where they defeated Sweden'sMargaretha Sigfridsson in the final. The win made Muirhead the youngest skip ever to win the World Women's Curling Championship.
Muirhead next made it to the Worldsin 2015 and finished in 4th place. At the2016 World Women's Curling Championship, the team missed the playoffs and finished in 5th place, while at the2017 World Women's Curling Championship, Muirhead would take home the bronze medal.
Muirhead would not play at the World Championships again until 2021, after missing 2018 due to losing a playoff against that year's Scottish championHannah Fleming, losing the 2019 Scottish final toSophie Jackson, and because the2020 World Women's Curling Championship was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. At the2021 World Women's Curling Championship, which was played in a bio-secure "bubble" due to the ongoing pandemic, Muirhead led Scotland to a 6–7 record for an 8th place finish.[18]
In 2022, she also partnered with fellow Scot and Olympic silver medallistBobby Lammie to win theMixed Doubles World Championship.[19]
In 2023, Muirhead took up a part-time coaching role withFay Henderson's team, which includes Amy McDonald, Katie McMillan andHailey Duff (whom with Eve won the2022 Olympic gold).[20][21]
Muirhead was appointed Chef de Mission for Team GB at the2024 Winter Youth Olympics.[22] With her guidance, Great Britain won the gold medal in both curling events.[23] She was appointed in the same role for the senior team at the2026 Winter Olympics.[24]
Muirhead grew up inBlair Atholl, Scotland, and plays golf off scratch handicap at Pitlochry Golf Course.[1][25] She is an accomplishedbagpiper, piping at four World Championships.[26]
On 5 April 2010, Muirhead modelled at the eighth annual fashion show Dressed to Kilt.[27] It was announced on 17 May 2010 that Muirhead would be the new ambassador forPiping Live! 2010, a festival dedicated to playing the bagpipes which would run from 9–15 August later in the year.[28][29] On 14 June 2010, it was reported that Muirhead had turned down the chance to become a professional golfer after receiving two scholarships from American universities.[30][31] There is a portrait of her with broom, clubs and pipes at the National Galleries Scotland.[32] Eve opened The National Curling Academy inStirling in 2017.[33]
In 2015 she was diagnosed withcoeliac disease and, in 2018, underwent hip surgery.[34][35]
In 2018 she received theHonorary degree ofDoctor of the University (D.Univ) from theUniversity of Stirling.[36]
Muirhead was appointedMember of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the2020 Birthday Honours for services to curling[37] andOfficer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the2022 Birthday Honours, also for services to curling.[38]
Muirhead's father,Gordon Muirhead, was also an international curler. He competed in the1992 Winter Olympics, where curling was a demonstration sport, and was alternate for Scotland's 1999 gold medal winningWorld Championship team. He won world silver medals in 1992, 1993 and 1995.[1]
She has two brothers,Glen andThomas Muirhead, who are also both accomplished curlers.
| Season | Skip | Third | Second | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006–07 | Sarah Reid | Eve Muirhead | Barbara McFarlane | Sarah MacIntyre |
| 2007–08 | Eve Muirhead | Kerry Barr | Vicki Adams | Sarah MacIntyre |
| 2008–09 | Eve Muirhead | Anna Sloan (Jr) Karen Addison (W) | Vicki Adams (Jr) Rachael Simms (W) | Sarah MacIntyre (Jr) Anne Laird (W) |
| 2009–10 | Eve Muirhead | Jackie Lockhart (E/O) Kelly Wood (W) | Kelly Wood (E/O) Lorna Vevers (W) | Lorna Vevers (E/O) Anne Laird (W) |
| 2010–11 | Eve Muirhead | Kelly Wood (E) Anna Sloan (Jr) | Lorna Vevers (E) Vicki Adams (Jr) | Anne Laird (E) Rhiann Macleod (Jr) |
| 2011–12 | Eve Muirhead | Anna Sloan | Vicki Adams | Claire Hamilton |
| 2012–13 | Eve Muirhead | Anna Sloan | Vicki Adams | Claire Hamilton |
| 2013–14 | Eve Muirhead | Anna Sloan | Vicki Adams | Claire Hamilton |
| 2014–15 | Eve Muirhead | Anna Sloan | Vicki Adams | Sarah Reid |
| 2015–16 | Eve Muirhead | Anna Sloan | Vicki Adams | Sarah Reid |
| 2016–17 | Eve Muirhead | Anna Sloan | Vicki Adams | Lauren Gray |
| 2017–18 | Eve Muirhead | Anna Sloan | Vicki Adams | Lauren Gray |
| 2018–19 | Eve Muirhead | Jennifer Dodds | Vicki Chalmers (Adams) | Lauren Gray |
| 2019–20 | Eve Muirhead | Lauren Gray | Jennifer Dodds | Vicky Wright |
| 2020–21 | Eve Muirhead | Vicky Wright | Jennifer Dodds | Lauren Gray |
| 2021–22 | Eve Muirhead | Vicky Wright | Jennifer Dodds | Hailey Duff |
Jr=Junior, E=European, W=World, O=Olympics.
Muirhead and her rink won their first-ever Grand Slam event by winning the2013 Players' Championship. It marked the first time a European team has ever won a Grand Slam event (men's or women's) and the second non-Canadian team. It was also the first time a non-Canadian team had ever won the Players'. Muirhead faced the SwedishMargaretha Sigfridsson in the final, in a re-match of the 2013 World Championships. The Players' final was also the first-ever Grand Slam final between two non-Canadian teams. Muirhead won a second straight Grand Slam at the2013 Curlers Corner Autumn Gold Curling Classic, becoming the first non-Canadian skip to win two Grand Slam titles in their career. Muirhead won a third slam at the2014 Colonial Square Ladies Classic and followed it up with a fourth slam at the inaugural Women's2014 Canadian Open of Curling. She won her fifth Grand Slam and third in a row by winning the2015 Players' Championship. She won a sixth Grand Slam title by winning the2016 Players' Championship.
| Key | |
|---|---|
| C | Champion |
| F | Lost in Final |
| SF | Lost in Semifinal |
| QF | Lost in Quarterfinals |
| R16 | Lost in the round of 16 |
| Q | Did not advance to playoffs |
| T2 | Played in Tier 2 event |
| DNP | Did not participate in event |
| N/A | Not a Grand Slam event that season |
| Event | 2010–11 | 2011–12 | 2012–13 | 2013–14 | 2014–15 | 2015–16 | 2016–17 | 2017–18 | 2018–19 | 2019–20 | 2020–21 | 2021–22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters | N/A | N/A | SF | F | Q | Q | Q | SF | Q | Q | N/A | DNP |
| Tour Challenge | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | QF | DNP | SF | DNP | DNP | N/A | N/A |
| The National | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | DNP | Q | DNP | QF | QF | N/A | DNP |
| Canadian Open | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | C | SF | DNP | DNP | SF | Q | N/A | N/A |
| Players' | SF | Q | C | QF | C | C | QF | QF | DNP | N/A | Q | QF |
| Champions Cup | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Q | Q | SF | SF[a] | N/A | Q | DNP |
| Event | 2010–11 | 2011–12 | 2012–13 | 2013–14 | 2014–15 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colonial Square | N/A | N/A | R16 | DNP | C |
| Autumn Gold | Q | Q | DNP | C | DNP |
| Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries | DNP | DNP | DNP | Q | N/A |
| Sobeys Slam | SF | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
(for Team Muirhead / Scotland / Team GB)
| Demonstration events | |
|---|---|
| Official events |
|
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|
Year: (country's flag) championskip | |
| |
Year: (country's/province's flag) championskip | |
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Year: (country's/province's flag) championskip | |
Year: (country's flag) championskip | |
| |
2007:  Scotland (SCO)Sarah Reid,Eve Muirhead,Barbara McFarlane,Sarah MacIntyre,Alison Black2008: Scotland (SCO)Eve Muirhead,Kerry Barr,Vicki Adams,Sarah MacIntyre,Kay Adams2009: Scotland (SCO)Eve Muirhead,Anna Sloan,Vicki Adams,Sarah MacIntyre,Kay Adams2011: Scotland (SCO)Eve Muirhead,Anna Sloan,Vicki Adams,Rhiann Macleod,Alice Spence |
