Team USA’s mixed doubles curling pair — Korey Dropkin and Cory Thiesse, a.k.a. “the Coreys” — didn’t form through some long tryout process or a last-minute Olympic scramble. It started with a one-on-one dinner invite that Thiesse says felt a little like a teammate proposal.
The timing couldn’t be bigger: Dropkin and Thiesse face Sweden for the Olympic gold medal on Feb. 10, 2026 at 12:05 p.m. ET. You can watch live on NBC/Peacock.
The ‘Coreys’ Began With a Dinner Invite and a Push From Thiesse’s Mom
In audio excerpts from Rachel Nichol’s interview, Thiesse described the moment Dropkin asked her to go to dinner — just the two of them — to talk about teaming up.
“I had admired Korey as a person and a curler,” Thiesse said. “I thought it was a little funny that he wanted to go to dinner just the two of us… The funny thing is that for years and years, her mom, Linda, had been sort of a birdie in my ear… saying, you know, you and my Corey would make really good teammates together.”
That “matchmaker” detail is part of what makes the partnership story stand out: Thiesse’s mom had been nudging the idea for years, and then Dropkin essentially made the official ask — teammate-style, over a meal. TIME reported a similar dynamic in a profile of the duo, noting the long-running push from Thiesse’s mom and the unusual feel of a one-on-one invite since the two were already close friends.
Why Their Partnership Clicked Fast (and Didn’t Feel Like a New Team)
The most important part of the origin story isn’t just the dinner; it’s why the partnership worked immediately.
“You guys won really quickly after you got together,” Nichols noted, referencing that the duo won a world title about a year into playing together.
Thiesse said the success made sense because their foundation was already there.
“We’ve just been really good friends for so long and have practiced and trained together a lot already,” she said. “So it just felt like a really kind of easy transition for us to become teammates… It’s not always that way when a new team starts. So I think we just started… above a lot of other teams.”
That’s the mixed doubles edge in plain terms: two players, fast decisions, constant communication. Teams with built-in trust and shared reps often look more settled early than brand-new pairings still figuring out rhythms.
What’s at Stake Today vs Sweden (and What Happens Next)
The U.S. duo already made history simply by reaching this point. Reuters reported the Americans secured the country’s first Olympic mixed doubles curling medal by advancing to the final.
Now, the “hardware” goal Thiesse described is right in front of them.
“This was really the big goal for us,” she said, “getting the Olympics and then of course ultimately bringing home some hardware and being at the top of that podium.”
One more reason this matters beyond the gold medal game: Thiesse isn’t done when mixed doubles ends. NBC’s Team USA coverage has listed her as competing in multiple curling events in Milan Cortina — mixed doubles and the women’s competition — giving the Americans another storyline to watch after today’s final.
For the “Coreys,” though, the story is simple in the final hour: a teammate “proposal” dinner turned into an Olympic run, and now they’re one win from the top step of the podium.
Korey Dropkin Asked Cory Thiesse to Dinner — Now Team USA Plays Sweden for Olympic Gold