The U.S. just beat the Russian curling team, but um, what is curling again?
The opening ceremony for the 2018 Winter Olympics is still a day away, but many don’t realize that a few of the games are already underway. In fact, the U.S. curling team defeated a team from Russia on Wednesday, February 7th (needless to say, GO USA!).
Brother and sister duo Matt and Becca Hamilton beat husband and wife Aleksandr Krushelnitcki and Anastasia Bryzgalova 9-3 while competing in the newest event to the Winter games, mixed doubles curling.
And fyi despite the loss, social media is abuzz with praise for Russian curling star Anastasia Bryzgalova – and it might have something to do with the fact that she looks like if Angelina Jolie and Meghan Fox had a baby. Just sayin’. false
https://twitter.com/udfredirect/status/961471899388620800
But more importantly, many of you out there might currently be thinking, “Um, what exactly is curling?”
It’s pretty simple when you break it down. Basically, players on each team slide large stones across a sheet of ice to a target (called “the house”) that’s comprised of four circles. Both teams get eight stones and alternate turns. One person on a team throws a stone, and then team members sweep it towards the target with what’s known as a “curling broom” (it’s harder than it sounds).
Learn about mixed doubles curling before it kicks off the 2018 #WinterOlympics tonight at 7:05pm ET. pic.twitter.com/pn8mzMYwb2
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 7, 2018
Scores are based on how close the team’s stones are to the center of their house.
Doubles teams (which always consist of one man and one woman) play with six stones instead of the traditional eight. It may look easy in comparison to other Olympic sports, like freestyle skiing and speed skating, but don’t be fooled. Curling requires a high-degree of balance and precision.
Now that we know a little more about the sport, we can totally tune in to watch the full Men’s and Women’s Olympic curling teams when they play next week!
