A former curler explains Canada’s most misunderstood sport
Samantha Osaduke
Staff Writer
Curling is perhaps one of Canada’s most misunderstood sports, despite the fact that we Canadians have more curlers in the Olympics than any other country. As a former curler myself, I know that it is sometimes not as respected as it should be. In order to truly appreciate the sport, one needs to understand what curling offers, demands and consists of.
First, in order to begin curling, it is necessary to have a four-person team. Each player can throw two rocks. The Lead is the first to curl, and provides sweeping. The second player goes up to throw the rock and provides sweeping as well. The Vice throws third, but has more responsibility in holding the brush, which is essentially the target for the Skip to aim for, with occasional sweeping. The Skip is considered the team captain, throws last, holds the brush for other members, tells members when to sweep and. looks at the “curl” of the rock.
There is some equipment that you will need to successfully join the sport. You must have a pair of clean running shoes on the ice, a sweater, loose fitting pants, gloves, and tape for the bottom of your shoes. More serious players should opt for a slider.
There is one sheet of ice for the game and games are usually determined with a coin toss where the winner usually chooses to go last. At the start of the game, the two Skips must go down to the house, and each team alternates. Sweepers judge the weight of the rock and how far it will travel. The player(s) can sweep the stone. The handle of the stone must be spun before releasing and the sport requires tremendous hand-eye coordination. The stone must cross the “hog line” but be no further than the “back line”. At the end, the two Vices must agree on the score before it is placed on the scoreboard. There are measuring devices which are very useful for determining who won. There are eight ends to a game of curling.
Curling consists of three basic shots. The Draw rests in the house, the Guard, which rests short of the house and either protects the stone in the house or is put up first then curled later, and the Takeout, which is a stone with enough weight to go through the house.
The University of Toronto Curling Club has 40 people from undergraduate and graduate studies. According to Brittany Prevost, president of the University of Toronto Curling Club, “I’m not sure I would consider curling an underrated sport, more that it’s not exactly a mainstream sport.”
Prevost states that accessibility of the sports makes it viable for most people to be involved. “Curling can be played with just a pair of clean shoes and sweatpants because most clubs will supply you with a broom to use so you do not need your own. After how popular curling was at the Vancouver Olympics, I suspect you will hear more about it gaining mainstream popularity.”
Curling is considered to be a lifelong sport, says Prevost. “Other than balance and coordination, the sweeping component of curling is a good cardio workout that can be done as rigorous or as slow as the sweeper can handle. Because of that, people from the ages of 7-90 can curl.”
Although the university is unsure of their retention, there are always players to keep the spirit of the sport alive. “I think we have [an] equal number of people who come out for events every year, and people who are brand new and come out to try the sport. There are definitely new people who will come to events in following years because they had so much fun.”
Ever wondered why York doesn’t have a curling team? According to Gillian McCullough, manager of inter-university sports at the School of Kinesiology and Health Science, “In order to become a club sport, a minimum group of 15 students must apply for club status. Based on availability and other criteria they could then be approved. Approximately every five years our compliment of varsity sports is reviewed and included in that review are the competitive clubs that are OUA or CIS sports. Curling was not included in the last review as it was not a club.”
Although curling isn’t considered a traditional sport, yelling at your friends on the ice is a form of liberation and a great way to exercise
