One of the most decorated European curlers of all time is set to call it a career.
Four-time world champion and seven-time Grand Slam champion Silvana Tirinzoni, of Switzerland, announced Wednesday on social media that she’ll be retiring from curling.
“It all began at the age of 10, when my dad signed me up for a curling course… Now, 37 years later, I feel it’s the right moment to retire,” Tirinzoni wrote in her post. “The decision is a very difficult one. It hurts. There are tears and it’s not easy to find the right words that truly reflect how I feel.”
Tirinzoni, 46, will be retiring on top, as her Swiss rink is ranked No. 1 in the world by World Curling as of Wednesday. That position in the standings made it harder for Tirinzoni to step away, but she said that “I feel that I’ve pushed myself to my absolute limits.”
Her career spans four decades after serving as an alternate at the world junior curling championships in 1997, then winning the tournament as the Swiss skip in 1999.
On the senior circuit, the Dielsdorf native qualified for her first World Championship in 2006 and finally took home the gold in 2019. She would go on to win three more golds in 2021, 2022 and 2023, along with silver medals in 2024 and 2025.
While she won her first GSOC event in 2015, taking home that year’s Tour Challenge, her greatest string of success has come in recent years, taking home three consecutive titles at the Players’ from 2024 to 2026, and nabbing her one and only Canadian Open in 2025. She also had wins at the 2019 Champions Cup and the 2022 National.
On the world stage, she took home the silver medal at the 2026 Olympic Games, ultimately losing to Team Hasselborg of Sweden in the final.
“Looking back, I can’t say I enjoyed every single minute. That wouldn’t be the truth. There were tough moments, setbacks and challenges. Moments that made me cry and forced difficult decisions,” Tirinzoni wrote. “But even in the darkest times of my career, one thing was always clear: I love curling.”
While Tirinzoni is stepping away, members of her rink will remain in the game. Fourth Alina Pätz and lead Selina Witschonke will stay together and explore their options, while second Carole Howald will focus on mixed doubles and Rock League.