U.S. men’s curling team, defending its gold medal, advances to the semifinals.

The U.S. men’s curling team advanced to the semifinals on Thursday with a 7-5 victory over Denmark.

The win comes after a shaky run that left the outcome of the team’s Olympic run uncertain.

Four years ago in South Korea, the team won the gold medal — the first ever in the sport for the United States, which had never been known as a curling powerhouse. That electrifying victory raised the profile of the team and the stakes for its Olympic return.

In Beijing, the team has won five of its nine games, ranking fourth behind Britain, Sweden and Canada. The team faces Britain in a game on Thursday evening (7 a.m. in New York). The United States beat Britain, 9-7, in a match on Friday.

“They’ve played great all week, truthfully,” John Shuster, the captain of the U.S. men’s team, said of his teammates after the win over Denmark.

The U.S. women’s curling team is tied with China for seventh place in the round-robin rankings, having won four of its nine games.

The men’s team has oscillated between wins and losses in Beijing. Besides Britain, it beat Russia, 6-5; China, 8-6; and Switzerland, 7-4, and then lost to Sweden, 7-4; Norway, 7-6; and Canada, 10-5.

After the win over Switzerland on Tuesday, the U.S. curler Matt Hamilton expressed optimism. “I love the fact that we’re in control of our own destiny,” he told reporters after the match.

That night, the United States lost to Italy, 10-4.

But Chris Plys, who joined the team in 2019, said he and his teammates had demonstrated resilience. “We’ve had our backs against the wall before,” he said after the win over Denmark.