Why does each side get 73 minutes in a curling match?
Seventy-three just seems so random. Sure it is a nice prime number but it doesn’t seem appropriate for an athletic match.
After 73 minutes, that 's enough. Same reason golf has 18 holes.
72 minutes is not enough? 75 minutes is too much?
You get 2 one-minute time outs as well, so the real total time is 75 minutes.
To clarify a bit: Originally the rule was just that each team got 75 minutes, with no time outs. When the 2 time outs were added, the clock time was reduced to 73 to maintain the same total time.
The point of the time outs is that you are allowed to discuss strategy with a coach during a time out, but not during normal play.
Basically it takes 15 minutes per end and with 10 ends that’s 150 minutes and each side therefore gets 75 minutes of play.
I’ve almost never seen a clock run out.
I did a little better, lasted almost three weeks. Didn’t go the hospital, though, but I probably should have.
I saw it yesterday in one of the women’s matches. It was gonna be close, and the clock did run out as their last rock was sliding, so I guess as long as you release before it hits 0:00, you’re okay.
I enjoy watching it in the Olympics, but come on - we can all agree that of everyone competing in the games, curlers are the least aptly described as “athletes”, right?
Well if you define a Olympic non-athlete as the participant most likely to come in last in a 5 mile run, then I would say yes.
But my definition of athleticism encompasses so much more than fitness. I give a lot of weight to people who are skillful and have a lot of hand-eye coordination and dexterity. I know a guy who runs competitive half-marathons, but he is about the klutziest person you could ever meet. He can’t dribble a basketball without it going off his feet, he cannot hit a tennis ball despite years of trying, etc.
Curling Schedule for those of you interested!
How you would compare them to Archery competitors (in the Summer games)?
I watched that match but somehow missed this. Do you happen to remember what end it happened in? I’d be interested to see it, but don’t want to slog through the whole match again.
You try sweeping a 10-ender at the level of curling they’re playing at the Olympics and then come back here and explain to us how no athleticism is required. The more force you apply to your sweeping, the more effective it is. And the more effective your sweeping is, the more shots you’ll make. Not to mention there’s a fair bit of strength and coordination involved in delivering a rock, too. While some of the skips are a bit…err…past their prime, tell me how many of the leads and seconds aren’t strapping young things.
Certainly there are plenty of sports that are more athletically demanding, but curling’s not at the bottom of the list. Even if you’re talking beer league, you’ll likely expend a fair bit more energy at curling than, say, slo pitch.
Kevin Martin! (I think.) My sister and I were watching the Canada-Norway match (apparently the Norweigian skip is a total hunk) and it made us feel a lot better that “older” people compete in Olympic curling. After seeing people your own age win medals in speed skating or alpine skiing, you start to feel like a total failure in life.
Curling is a lot more fun than I would have thought before watching a match. I actually yelled at the TV when the signal got screwy right in the middle of a major shot, something that I rarely even do for football.
Archers at least need enough strength to draw the bow. Shooters (i.e., pistols and rifles) just need to pull a trigger.
also on the athleticism point, remember that while you’re sweeping forwards and backwards, you’re sliding sideways on ice, and one of your shoes has a teflon sole so it is nice and slippery…that takes a considerable amount of co-ordination.
9th end, if I remember correctly. The commentators commented on it.
Man, that curling announcer is brutal. “Bad call, bad call . . . she shouldn’t be holding the broom, making a call like that!”
Just watched it, and it was actually 10th end, tied 4-4, Canada with the hammer. Which makes it all the more the class act, as it could have easily changed the outcome (Canada won 5-4). Good on the Swiss.
As I noted in the general Olympic thread, based on this logic (which I agree with), the US Skip shouldn’t even be allowed in the building.