Curling

Curling is a precision sport similar to bowls or bocce, but played on ice with polished heavy stones rather than plastic balls. The game is generally believed to have been invented in 16th century Scotland, although two paintings by Pieter Brueghel the Elder depict Dutch peasants curling.

Whatever the truth of the matter, outdoor curling was very popular in Scotland between the 16th and the 19th centuries when the climate was cold enough to ensure good ice conditions every winter, and as a result the international governing body for curling, the World Curling Federation, is based in Perth, Scotland.

Curling has been an official sport in the Winter Olympics since the 1998 Winter Olympic Games (some sources also include the competition held in 1924 Winter Olympic Games as an official olympic tournament).

The game is currently most firmly established, however, in Canada. The Royal Montreal Curling Club, the first sporting club of any kind in North America, was established in 1807. The first curling club in the United States began in 1832, and the game was introduced to Switzerland and Sweden before the end of the nineteenth century. Today, curling is played all over Europe, and has spread to Japan, Australia, New Zealand and even China and Korea.

Playing Surface

Curling Stone

The Players

Equipment

The Game

Curling Culture