Countdown To The 2026 Olympic Curling
Curling
Curling is a winter sport where two teams of players slide curling stones down a sheet of specially prepared ice and attempt to get their color stones closest to the center of the house (a circular target marked on the ice).
More so than in many other team sports, good sportsmanship, often referred to as the “Spirit of Curling”, is an integral part of curling. All of the players are there to enjoy the game of curling first, the competition is second. A true curler never attempts to distract opponents, nor to prevent them from playing their best, and would prefer to lose rather than to win unfairly. Players are expected to call their own fouls. After the game it is typical for both teams to sit down and mingle (broomstacking) and it is tradition for the winning team to buy the first round of drinks.
Curling has been adapted for wheelchair users and people otherwise unable to throw the stone from the hack. They accomplish this by using a delivery aid. At the Pittsburgh Curling Club, it is possible for every ability to compete together.
At the club level, there are all types of leagues and tournaments (bonspiels); from casual-social to competitive leagues. Whether you are extremely mobile or have some mobility impairments, everyone can participate together. There is a place for everyone in curling.
Pittsburgh Curling Club
We are southwestern Pennsylvania’s local curling club. We have 4 sheets of ‘REAL’ dedicated curling ice, just like what the Olympians play on. Therefore, if you would like to see what a full size ice sheet looks like, or if you want to get down in the hack and see if you can slide the rock the 126 feet to the button, you want to visit the Pittsburgh Curling Club for a Learn to Curl.
We make our ice out of filtered rainwater. The Building has a rainwater catchment system that collects and stores the water for us to make the ice.
Our dedicated curling facility is ADA compliant with easy access to the ice and an elevated warm room for great viewing. When we first started thinking about building our dedicated curling facility, we knew that we wanted to make sure it was accessible for all.
Olympic Curling Events
Curling has been an off and on Olympic event over the years. It was a full-fledged event in the first winter Olympics in 1924, became a demonstration sport 3 more times following that and became an official sport again in 1998. The Olympic curling events take place over a series of round robins. The Olympic series consists of the Men’s, Women’s and Mixed Doubles tournaments.
Mixed Doubles, a fast paced game where the majority of play is to the center of the house, is a variation of curling in which teams contain one male and one female athlete. Only 5 rocks are thrown instead of 8. One of many unique things about doubles curling is that ends start with rocks in play. Before each end of play begins, two rocks (not the ones being thrown) are set up at the other end of the sheet; one rock in the house and the other as a guard. One player on the team throws the 1st and 5th stones, (first and last) and the other team member throws the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th stones (middle).
The remainder of the Winter Olympics consists of the men’s and women’s team games. The team curling events are played with two teams of four players (eight stones) where each player throws two stones, alternating between teams.