Curling connects people and builds on community

Curling is Cool Day is observed annually on February 23 to celebrate a sport that is cool and interesting.

In case you haven’t heard of curling before, it is a team sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a targeted area which is segmented into four concentric circles. It is usually played by two teams, each with four players taking turns.

Each side has eight stones, and the players would stand on an ice rink that has been sprayed with water that freezes into a special surface called pebbled ice. 

The game was also given several nicknames called “The Roaring Game” and “Chess on Ice.” When the game starts, the player would guide the stones in certain directions by sweeping the ice in front of the stones.

The purpose of curling is to score as many points as you can by getting the stones closer to the center than the other team’s stones.

Curling was started in the 1500s in Scotland when people played on lakes and ponds in winter. In the 1600s, the first stones with handles were introduced. Then it gradually became a popular sport played in cold weather where the Scots lived, including parts of Canada, the United States, Sweden, New Zealand and many more.

A few centuries later, curling became much more standard and professional, and the sport was also introduced to a lot of indoor ice facilities.

In 1924, curling played in the Olympics for the first time in Chamonix, France. However, it didn’t considered an official Olympic sport by the committee until 2006.

Today, curling is an Olympic and Paralympic winter sport for women, men, mixed doubles and mixed wheelchair teams. It has become a popular game that is loved by lots of people of all ages.

This sport may seem very strange, but you can take a curling lesson to give it a try and enjoy an exciting curling match with a group of friends.