breaking curling down...

Good Morning,

I've been told I have "incredible discipline..." as a writer, in my workouts, in my studies. Some have wondered how do I do it? Well, I'll tell you. I set the bar very low...I like to start the morning off with Mike and Mike in the Morning (on ESPN Radio). There's something in the dead air space of Buster Douglas's addle-brained interview or a baseball manager's "we need to make some plays" that's like jumping on an old familiar bike and coasting into the routine of the day...

If loneliness or a despondency kicks in, I always know I can challenge the demons with Sports Talk! These questions leave an internal chatter like the Little Leaguer's "batter-ay-batter-ay-batter-ay..."

that can always move me forward...to swing even if I know I'm going to miss...

Anyway, in true Mike and Mike fashion I have broken down an up and coming HOT topic for you...tomorrow starts the first round of OLYMPIC CURLING!

First question is curling a sport?...yes

Curling made its modern Olympic debut at the 1998 Winter Games and I'm not sure anyone's checked its credentials. It's back this year at the Vancouver Games boasting a country of curling crazies!

After a quick credential check, I say yes. curling is a sport.

It has PSR!

P- It requires skilled physicality.
S-It has a following or spectatorship- it is watchable…at least by people in Canada...and Minnesota
R-It has an agreed upon set of rules sanctioned by a governing body

Since it is in fact a sport according to the PSR criteria I'm determined to watch.

I am neither Canadian or a Minnesotan. Watching 8 innings of a curling match is somewhere between watching golf, bowling, or paint dry...

...here's what we can watch for

1. The Canadians

Benjamin Hebert

"I take pride in my sweeping. I think I'm a really good sweeper and I think my peers will vouch for me."

According to the Olympic website, in the final round robin game at the 2009 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials he was controversially accused of an illegal brushing move - lifting his broom vertically with the intention of dumping debris in front of a heavy draw...(He denied the allegation).

Marc Kennedy


While he is on a winning streak he refuses to change his socks...(the Olympic website)

John Morris


Morris was known as the "bad boy" of curling, regularly breaking brooms during games and ripping his shirt off after losing. (thestar.com, 09 Mar 2009)

2. Moving women forward or setting the "sport" of curling back?

Women have already been handed a setback in the IOC's refusal to allow women ski jumpers to compete in this Olympics...

Kristie Moore an alternate player on the Canadian Women's team is either making the case for the modern SUPERWOMAN or single handedly making the argument for why curling is not a sport...

She is due to give birth on May 27, 2010. Canadian women's national team coach Elaine Dagg-Jackson was initially concerned about the pregnancy. "Her concern, she said, wasn't my ability but the fact that I'm pregnant. I'll be five months pregnant during the Olympics. I convinced her I'd put in the work." (winnipegsun.com, 23 Dec 2009)


off hand i can think of no other sport where an elite athlete can compete while 5 months pregnant...Is curling a sport?

3. Paralympic Curlers gaining a foothold


More than most, I am very excited for the competitors that will be taking the rink at the Vancouver Olympic Centre the two weeks after the Olympics. Elite athletes with disabilities will be competing in the 2010 Paralympic Games!

In Wheelcair Curling the same rules apply as able-bodied curling with some modifications such as no sweeping and the stone may be delivered from a stationary wheelchair either by hand release or using an extender cue.



The main differences as I see them are:

must release stone while stationary

no sweeping???

okay, then in all fairness to physicality and spectatorship (PSR) I would like to nominate Pink for the 2014 Games...

(Pink at the Grammys) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3stsDXki__U

Maybe Pink can do this over the curling rink to drum up spectatorship and solidify wheelchair curlings' place among sport?

anyway...

As the athlete's gain prominence so have their antics and attitudes. One competitor in this years' international wheelchair curling competition has unleashed his wheelchair spinning 360 before releasing the puck...

In the spirit of showmanship his fellow competitor promptly innovated a "pop-a-wheelie" approach and...landed flat on his back. Ahh, yes. Citius, Altius, Fortius! (Swifter, Higher, Stronger!) I feel the circle of life moving along...

Happy Monday (and Happy Presidents' Day)

Amanda