It was halfway across the world nearly a decade ago that Minnesota native John Shuster chose to completely change the way he thought about curling.
It took being on the brink of elimination in the round robin portion of the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang for him to realize that he was putting too much pressure on himself when it came to the game he loved so much.
It wasn’t sustainable.
“I decided I wasn’t going to let results define my joy,” Shuster said. “I decided I was going to be satisfied with being the best I could possibly be.”
That shift in mindset freed Shuster from the weight of expectations that had been holding him back for so long. It paid off almost immediately as the U.S. beat Canada, then Switzerland, then Great Britain in succession to advance to the medal round.
That paved the way for Shuster — born in Chisolm and living near Duluth — to reach celebrity status. He became the face of the sport stateside after the U.S. finished the job and took home its first gold medal in the sport.
“Just seeing how much difference that made was huge,” Shuster said. “I’ve never gone back.”
That shift in mindset was put to the test in the lead up to 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. The questions were rooted in whether Team Shuster was approaching it like it was gold medal or bust. The answers were similar each time.
“The comment I made was, ‘If we can leave feeling like we played the best we could play then I’d be OK,’ ” Shuster said. “Then of course God said, ‘Hold my beer.’ ”
Not only did the U.S. fail to secure the gold medal, the group that included Shuster, John Landsteiner, Matt Hamilton and Chris Plys missed out on the podium altogether.
“I realized how much of a change I had personally made when I walked off after losing in the semifinals,” Shuster said. “I didn’t have this massive emotionally defeated response. That’s validating looking back on it. I was like, ‘You know what? I really am living how I say I am.’ ”
That shift in mindset was once again on display a few months ago when Team Shuster lost to Team Casper in the Olympic Trials. The meant that Team Shuster wouldn’t be representing the U.S. at the to 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina.
After shaking hands in defeat, Team Shuster committed to helping Team Casper in whatever way they could. It speaks to how close the community is at its core. It also speaks to the change Shuster committed to long ago.
“The fact that we played great and lost probably made it easier for me,’” Shuster said. “That definitely helped the next step, which was, ‘Let’s support these guys.’ ”
This will be the first time in 20 years that Shuster is not representing his country on the highest stage. That doesn’t mean he will be completed removed from the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina. He’s going to be serving as a curling analyst live from NBC Studios in Stamford, Conn.
“I’ll be watching every shot of every game,” Shuster said. “I’ll be able to give some insight to what I’m seeing.”
That shift in mindset continues to show up for Shuster nearly a decade later, even though he’s well aware of the irony that followed him choosing not to let results define his joy. Would he still have stayed committed to the change had it not played a role in him winning the gold medal?
“I don’t know,” Shuster said. “I hope it would’ve because life as a whole has been better since I was like, ‘My best is good enough for me.’ I try to teach my kids that. We don’t always have to be perfect if we’re doing our best.”
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