The other day I was grabbing a snack at a local pub when I noticed what struck me as an odd scene on one of the TVs. At first glance it looked like a couple of people encouraging a large, mobile Pet Rock to win a race. Of course, the sport was Curling, and it was an Olympic Qualification Event. I had “heard of” curling, but I had never seen it played.

It turns out that there is more to the sport than meets the eye. More about that in a minute, but first, for the uninitiated such as myself, it is always good to start with finding out the basics. Here’s a fun little two minute video from Curling Canada that does the job nicely.

Curling Canada (YouTube Channel)
Curling Canada (Official Website)

Entertaining, but that video doesn’t really explain why the sport’s nickname is “Chess on Ice.” Here’s a video that explains more about curling and mentions the nickname.

WatchMojo (YouTube Channel)
WatchMojo (Official Website)

There is even a whole Chess on Ice YouTube channel that explains the sport in great detail. Here’s a short introductory video from the channel that starts to give a sense of the complexities of curling strategy.

Chess on Ice (YouTube Channel)

Better yet, the sport is the subject of a debate among physicists, and there are even scientific papers about it. Here’s a video about the controversy.

Smarter Every Day (YouTube Channel)
Smarter Every Day (Official Website)

Cool stuff. Of course, being me, the most entertaining thing I found was a 360° videos that shows what it is like to “be the stone” 🙂

Travel Affect – 360 degrees (YouTube Channel)

You can find out more about this unusual Olympic sport on the World Curling TV YouTube channel and the World Curling Federation web site.

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