If you have ever come across a curling tournament, it may not have caught your eye much. The sport, however, is one that has been around for a while and in recent times has gained a following. The sport was invented in Scotland and has been an official winter Olympics game since 1998. It includes tournaments of both men and women, and different country sends their teams to represent their countries. The sport requires that the team members have skill are relaxed to be able to deliver scores. Below are some basics of curling.
Basics Of Curling
The equipment
Curling involves having a playing surface that is known as a curling sheet that is flat, has
ice and is rectangular. There is a target or house which consists of a center circle and concentric rings. There is also the granite curling stone also known as the rock. The stone has a handle that allows the stone to be gripped and rotated when one releases it. The handle is typically colored to identify different teams. Lastly, we have the curling broom or brush. This is used to sweep the ice surface when the stone is released to melt the ice on the curling stone’s path and deliver it to the required target. One also needs to wear particular shoes that have a specific sole on each foot side.
The team
The curling team is a team of four people. They are known as the first, the second, the third or vice-skip and the skip. They all play and release the curling stone to play. The skip normally does the call when the first, second and vice skip are delivering their stones. When he takes his turn, the vice skip takes over the calling.
The gameplay
The aim of the game is to get points by getting the curling stones as close to the house center as compared to the other team stones. Two teams play at the same time and alternate in taking shots. Each player releases two stones, that is a total of 8 for each team, for the Olympics is 10 for each team. And end is achieved when all the players from each team have had a shot that is a total of 16 to 20. The team with the highest score is the winner. If the scores are a draw, then play continues for another end until there is a break in the tie. Curling requires the team members to have strategy and skill to be able to deliver scores.…