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BEIJING (AP) 鈥� About the only way the U.S. men鈥檚 curling team can top its entrance at the Beijing Olympics is by winning another gold medal.

Skip John Shuster carried the American flag into the Bird鈥檚 Nest for the opening ceremony along with speedskater Brittany Bowe on Friday night. Shuster鈥檚 teammates, including two who were with him when the Americans won their first Olympic curling gold medal four years ago, walked in just behind him, arm-in-arm.

鈥淏eing able to experience that, honestly, with another athlete, and to lead all of Team USA was the biggest honor of my career to this point,鈥� said Shuster, a five-time Olympian who also won a bronze at Turin in 2006.

Shuster was the at the Olympics, a sign of how popular the sport has become since the Americans鈥� dramatic win at Pyeongchang in 2018, when they survived five straight elimination matches.

鈥淚 had the best seat in the house, baby. I was right behind him,鈥� teammate Matt Hamilton said Saturday.

Hamilton was still buzzing about a his sister, Becca, a member of the women鈥檚 team, took from just behind the men鈥檚 team as it entered the stadium. It shows Hamilton, Chris Plys, John Landsteiner and alternate Colin Hufman arm-in-arm, with Shuster waving the flag and the Olympic rings in the background.

Hamilton called it 鈥渙ne of the most epic photos I have ever seen. I don鈥檛 know if she realized it when she took it, but that photo is incredible and I鈥檓 just super stoked to be a part of it. It kind of felt very fitting that John was up there and the four of us teammates behind, linked arm-in-arm, had his back, just like we always do. It just felt like a really perfect start to this Olympics.鈥�

Shuster and Hamilton said that while there is pressure being the defending gold medalists, they aren鈥檛 going to let it overwhelm them.

鈥淗onestly, for us as athletes, the fact that we got to reach the pinnacle of our sport 鈥� we鈥檒l always be Olympic champions,鈥� Shuster said. 鈥淭hat will be something we always get to carry with us. That鈥檚 kind of let the pressure off me. I鈥檝e always cared so much about going to the Olympics and having a great performance. Getting to be on the top of that podium I think has taken the pressure off and I think we鈥檙e just really going to go out there and enjoy the opportunity to try to defend.鈥�

The men鈥檚 competition starts Wednesday at the .

鈥淐an鈥檛 take that medal away from me now,鈥� Hamilton said with a laugh. 鈥淛ust stoked to be back and obviously the first go-around went well. That鈥檚 all I know. Hoping to do it again.鈥�

Hamilton said he had a moment after the 2018 Games when he had to decide if he was content with one gold medal or wanted to go for another. Plus, there鈥檚 the social aspect of being in the tight-knit curling community.

鈥淚 realized I was still hungry and love competing,鈥� he said. 鈥淧laying against all my friends is kind of a dream come true from all the other countries. They鈥檙e all awesome people. I had some of the guys from the Swedish team come to my wedding the summer before the Olympics. So just the friendships I鈥檝e cultivated through curling is another big reason that I just wanted to continue to compete so I could go around and see all my buddies again.鈥�

Shuster鈥檚 Olympic career has had its ups and downs. He won bronze in 2006, the first U.S. Olympic curling medal of any color, as the lead for Pete Fenson鈥檚 team. He left to form his own rink, earning a trip to the Vancouver Games but performing so badly that he benched himself.

After finishing last in 2010, Shuster won the U.S. trials again four years later but managed just a ninth-place finish in Sochi. When USA Curling put together a high-performance camp of the country鈥檚 top 10 players, Shuster didn鈥檛 make the cut.

So he put together a foursome called 鈥淭eam Rejects鈥� and not only beat the federation-backed squads in the U.S. trials but won gold in 麻豆传媒AV Korea.

Now it鈥檚 back to being Team Shuster.

鈥淲e are definitely a team,鈥� Shuster said. 鈥淪omeone said if you could describe your job, I鈥檓 like, 鈥業 yell at my employees for a living and I鈥檓 treated as if I鈥檓 their boss, but I鈥檓 not really their boss.鈥欌��

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Bernie Wilson, The Associated Press