Scotland men and women win European openers

Scotland men emulate their female counterparts by opening the European Curling Championships with victory. Scotland men emulated their female counterparts by opening the European Curling Championships with victory. Grant Hardie's rink triumphed 8-4 in Ostrava in the Czech Republic and face Belgium later on Wednesday. The men picked up two at the opening end and three at the third to lead 5-1. The Dutch were 6-4 down after six ends but Scotland picked up two more at the seventh to see out the win. Fay Henderson's Scotland women began their campaign with a comprehensive 12-3 victory over Denmark.

They edged the opening two ends by single points before the Danes halved the deficit. However, the Scots took control of their opening, surging into a five-point lead by the close of the fourth end. Although Denmark scored two points in the fifth, Scotland ended the contest emphatically with a six-point haul in the sixth and final end. Watch selected games live on the BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app. New-look Scottish rinks eye European curling medals – watch live on BBC