Curling

A brief description of the

Olympics’ least understood sport

Seth Forney
3/17/10
Audience and Scope:

This article is targeted at the average American who enjoys watching sports. Despite most
Americans having at least a passing interest in the Winter Olympic Games, they seem to
typically find the sport of curling either boring, confusing, or both. This article aims to describe
the sport of curling, including its playing surface, equipment, and basic rules. It does not describe
technique or strategy in depth, as those things are not necessary for a beginner to enjoy watching
the game.

Introduction

Since 1998, curling has been recognized as an official Olympic sport. However, despite this
global stage given it every four years, the typical American tends to know little about it. Curling
is a sport played by two opposing four-player teams sliding 42 pound granite stones down a sheet
of ice. While these stones slide down the ice, members of the team sweep the ice in front of the
stone in order to influence its path and affect its natural movement, or “curl.” The team’s goal is
to have its stones closer to the center of the “house,” the rings at the end of the ice sheet, than the
opposing team at the end of each round.

The Playing Surface

Curling is played on a piece of ice called the “sheet” (Figure 1). On either end of the sheet is a
piece of rubber embedded in the ice called a “hack.” The purpose of the hack will be discussed in
more detail later in this document. Six feet from the hack is the back line, which coincides with
the back end of the “house,” the goal area. The house comprises three concentric rings, one of 12
feet, one of 8 feet, and one of 4 feet in diameter. In the center of the 4 foot ring is a small circle
called the “button.” Through the center of the button widthwise is the “tee line.” Twenty one feet
from the tee line is another widthwise line known as the “hog line.” Finally, the “center line”
goes down the center of the sheet lengthwise. The sheet is 138 feet from end to end, and is
symmetric about its center.
 Figure 1. The Sheet
The Equipment

There are three major pieces of equipment needed in curling: the stones, the brooms, and the
shoes.

The Stones

In Olympic curling, each team uses 8 curling stones

(Figure 2). These stones are traditionally made from a
specific type of granite called Ailsite. Including the
handle, stones must weigh between 38 and 44 pounds.
On the top surface is a colored handle used to grip the
stone and distinguish it from the opposite team’s stones.
The bottom surface of the stone is concave. The reason
for this concavity is discussed later.
Figure 2. A Curling Stone

The Brooms

On the surface of the sheet are small droplets of frozen water.

These droplets cause the stone to move according to its spin.
This motion is called “curling,” from which the sport takes its
name. As the delivered stone travels down the ice, two team
members sweep the ice in front of the stone. This sweeping
serves to cause friction and melt the ice droplets, affecting the
stone’s speed and the severity of its curl. Historically, regular
straw brooms were used to sweep the ice, but these have the
disadvantage of occasionally leaving straw on the ice, which can
hinder the path of the stone. Figure 3. A Synthetic Broom
Today, brooms are typically made from synthetic material, such as carbon fiber. These modern
brooms (Figure 3) have the advantage of being durable and not leaving material behind.

The Shoes

Each of a curler’s shoes (Figure 4) has a different bottom

surface. On one shoe, the bottom has material meant to
provide traction and grip the ice (the non-sliding shoe).
The other shoe is smooth on the bottom and is meant to
allow the player to slide along the ice (the slider shoe).
These shoes can either be made specifically for curling,
or sleeves can be used that fit over regular shoes to serve
the same purpose.
Figure 4. Curlers’ Shoes

The Rules

A curling match consists of ten “ends,” similar to innings in baseball, in which teams take turns
sliding (called “throwing”) their stones down the ice toward the house. Since there are four
players on each team, each player throws two stones per end. The first player to throw is called
the “lead,” the second is called the “second,” the third is called the “third,” and the last player to
throw is called the “skip.” The skip also serves as the team’s captain and stands in the house to
indicate where the player currently throwing should aim.
When it is a player’s turn to throw, he positions himself at the hack and pushes off with his
gripping shoe while keeping his weight on his slider, sometimes using his broom for balance. As
he approaches the first hog line, he releases and applies spin to the stone. This spin will dictate
how the stone curls on its way toward the house. As the stone moves down the ice, the thrower
and the player in the house (typically the skip, except in the case where the skip is throwing) yell
out to the two players sweeping to tell them how hard to sweep in an effort to ensure the stone
takes the desired path with the correct speed, or “weight.” The stone must cross the second hog
line completely, or it is immediately removed from play.

Scoring

At the conclusion of each end, the score for the end is assessed. The team with the stone closest
to the center of the button receives a point for each of its stones that is closer to the button than
the closest stone of the opposing team. Figure 5 illustrates an example in which the red team has
all of its stones in the house, but since the yellow stone is closest to the center of the button, the
yellow team receives the only point. If, at the completion of an end, neither team has a stone in
the house, no points are awarded. This is known as a “blank end.” When a team scores, it takes
the first shot in the next round. This gives the opposing team the advantage of shooting the final
rock of the next end. The team that has the last shot of an end is said to “have the hammer” for
that round. A team keeps the hammer until it scores and the hammer passes to the other team.

Figure 5. An Example of Scoring

Types of Shots

Detailed strategy is beyond the scope of this article, but there are three primary types of shots in
curling: the draw, the takeout, and the guard. The goal of the draw is to place a stone in a specific
position, often as close to the button as possible. The takeout is a shot in which the thrower’s
stone is used to knock one or more of the other team’s stones out of position. A guard is a stone
which is thrown at the top of the house, meant to protect stones behind it.

Conclusion

Curling is, at its core, a game of strategy. Each team must consider its stone placement
thoroughly before acting, and the team must communicate effectively to ensure the sweepers
work with the thrower to put the stone where it needs to be. Upon first glance, curling may seem
to be a bizarre game that is accessible only to a select few, but with a basic knowledge of the
game, anybody can watch and enjoy a match.
Works Cited

http://www.anchoragecurling.com/evolution.htm
http://www.comoxvalleycurling.com/
http://www.goldline.ca/curling-brooms.aspx
http://www.worldcurling.org/

Image Credits

Figure 1: http://www.apollocalgary.com/apollo/curling/game.asp
Figure 2: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Curlingrock.jpg
Figure 3: http://www.richmondcurling.com/Proshop/Broom/Olson%20Reactor2%20Carbon.jpg
Figure 4: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Curlingshoes.jpg
Figure 5: http://freshbuzzdaily.com/06341/what-are-the-olympic-curling-rules-of-scoring/