P.E.I.'s Brett Gallant wins bronze medal at Winter Olympics

Charlottetown-born curler Brett Gallant celebrated his birthday this year with a bronze medal at the Winter Olympics.

Gallant played second for the Brad Gushue rink in Friday's bronze medal game in men's curling where they defeated Olympic champion John Shuster and the United States 8-5 at the Ice Cube in Beijing.

This is probably his best birthday gift yet, said Gallant, who turned 32 on Friday.

"It's pretty special, a very special moment and to share it with these guys means the world to me," he said.

"I think the bronze is going to feel pretty special once the sting of [not winning] the gold wears off."

The occasion was even more special for him as he shared a kiss with his fiance Jocelyn Peterman on the ice upon his team's win, and he had his father Peter Gallant with him in Beijing this week.

"I don't get to see them a lot while we're competing but having them here for that moment was certainly really really nice," he said.

For Brad Gushue, the bronze medal tells the story of his team and how they overcame tough times.

Just the day before on Thursday, they lost to Sweden and were out of gold-medal contention.

"Last night we all said we were super proud of each other. We had a rough morning," Gushue said, fighting back tears as he was speaking to CBC.

"We weren't at our best this week. I think that was clear to every Canadian curling fanthat watch this," he said.

"For us to grind through and come out with a bronze medal, it's something I'm super proud of right now."