Curling

Curling is a sport that was already being played in Scotland in the early sixteenth century.  A curling stone was found with the date 1511 when a pond had water drawn from it at Dunblane, Scotland.  The first curling club was Kilsyth Curling Club and is still in existence today.

Curling is a team sport where each team has four players.  The playing court is made of a sheet of ice measuring 44.50m in length by 4.32m to 5m in width.  The court is carefully made as level as possible.  The ice is artificially refrigerated by pipes running lengthwise under the curling sheet.  The surface of the ice is approximately -5 degrees centigrade.

There are two 3.66 m rings, called the house, that are painted at the end of each court.  They resemble a bull's eye in that the rings are drawn inside each other.  Scoring is determined by where the granite stone, or playing piece, lands within the house.

Two players follow their teammate with brooms and sweep the granite stone in the house.

Using brooms to sweep the ice helps to melt the top of the ice so that the stone can gain speed.

The winning team is determined by tallying the scoreboard after all the players have taken turns to make eight shots with the granite stones.  The team whose stone is closest to the house earns a point for each of its stones.  Any stone that does not reach the house does not earn any points.  The team with the highest number of points wins the game.

Use a custom usb with your favourite player or part of the sport printed on it for free!