114-466: Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area that is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls , boules , and shuffleboard . Two teams, each with four players, take turns sliding heavy, polished granite stones, also called rocks , across the ice curling sheet toward the house , a circular target marked on the ice. Each team has eight stones, with each player throwing two. The purpose
228-514: A handloom weaver, Gray was born at Merkland, by Kirkintilloch , Dunbartonshire. His parents resolved to educate him for the Free Kirk , and through their self-denial and his own exertions as a pupil teacher and private tutor he was able to complete a course of four sessions at the university of Glasgow . He began to write poetry for Glasgow Evening Citizen and began his idyll on the Luggie ,
342-492: A wage or salary ). Amateur participation in sport at lower levels is often called "grassroots sport". The popularity of spectator sport as a recreation for non-participants has led to sport becoming a major business in its own right, and this has incentivised a high paying professional sport culture, where high performing participants are rewarded with pay far in excess of average wages, which can run into millions of dollars. Some sports, or individual competitions within
456-462: A backdrop of the Luggie Water . The eponymous anthology is available and is out of copyright. David Gray's self penned epitaph was: Below lies one whose name was traced in sand- He died not knowing what it was to live: Died while the first sweet consciousness of manhood And maiden thought electrified his soul: Faint beatings in the calyx of the rose. Bewildered reader, pass without
570-717: A ball has crossed the goal line or not. The technology is not compulsory, but was used in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada, as well as in the Premier League from 2013–14 , and the Bundesliga from 2015–16 . In the NFL , a referee can ask for a review from the replay booth, or a head coach can issue a challenge to review the play using replays. The final decision rests with
684-465: A brief memoir by James Hedderwick , was published in 1862; and a new and enlarged edition of Gray's Poetical Works , edited by Henry Glassford Bell , appeared in 1874. See also David Gray and other Essays , by Robert Buchanan (1868), where he also has an essay on Walt Whitman. Buchanan also has a poem on David Gray, in Idyls and Legends of Inverburn . Parts of "The Luggie" have been narrated against
798-469: A definition is provided by the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF), which is the association for all the largest international sports federations (including association football , athletics , cycling , tennis , equestrian sports , and more), and is therefore the de facto representative of international sport. GAISF uses the following criteria, determining that
912-471: A disability have no equivalent in able-bodied sports. Masters sport , senior sport , or veteran sport is an age category of sport, that usually contains age groups of those 35 and older. It may concern unaltered or adapted sport activities, with and without competitions. Competitions The competition element of sport, along with the aesthetic appeal of some sports, result in the popularity of people attending to watch sport being played. This has led to
1026-423: A foreign object is called a pick-up or pick . The thrower starts from the hack . The thrower's gripper shoe (with the non-slippery sole) is positioned against one of the hacks; for a right-handed curler the right foot is placed against the left hack and vice versa for a left-hander. The thrower, now in the hack , lines the body up with shoulders square to the skip's broom at the far end for line . The stone
1140-534: A line first. It can also be determined by judges who are scoring elements of the sporting performance, including objective or subjective measures such as technical performance or artistic impression. Records of performance are often kept, and for popular sports, this information may be widely announced or reported in sport news . Sport is also a major source of entertainment for non-participants, with spectator sport drawing large crowds to sport venues , and reaching wider audiences through broadcasting . Sport betting
1254-411: A player is not throwing, the player's slider shoe can be temporarily rendered non-slippery by using a slip-on gripper. Ordinary athletic shoes may be converted to sliders by using a step-on or slip-on Teflon slider or by applying electrical or gaffer tape directly to the sole or over a piece of cardboard. This arrangement often suits casual or beginning players. The gripper is worn by the thrower on
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#17327832266551368-439: A real appreciation of natural beauty. Below is a copy of a sonnet which is one of a number he wrote, entitled, "In the shadows." His description of a wet October day shows the skill of the terminally-ill poet: October's gold is dim— the forests rot, The weary rain falls ceaseless, while the day Is wrapped in damp. In mire of village way Tae hedge-row leaves are stamp'd, and, all forgot, The broodless nest sits visible in
1482-431: A rectangular area of ice, carefully prepared to be as flat and level as possible, 146 to 150 feet (45 to 46 m) in length by 14.5 to 16.5 feet (4.4 to 5.0 m) in width. The shorter borders of the sheet are called the backboards. A target, the house , is centred on the intersection of the centre line , drawn lengthwise down the centre of the sheet and the tee line , drawn 16 feet (4.9 m) from, and parallel to,
1596-586: A regular sports season , followed in some cases by playoffs . Sport is generally recognised as system of activities based in physical athleticism or physical dexterity , with major competitions admitting only sports meeting this definition. Some organisations, such as the Council of Europe , preclude activities without any physical element from classification as sports. However, a number of competitive, but non-physical, activities claim recognition as mind sports . The International Olympic Committee who oversee
1710-409: A single person with others being done by hundreds. Most sports take place either in teams or competing as individuals. Some sports allow a "tie" or "draw", in which there is no single winner; others provide tie-breaking methods to ensure one winner. A number of contests may be arranged in a tournament format, producing a champion . Many sports leagues make an annual champion by arranging games in
1824-769: A small number of mind sports, it is not open to admitting any further mind sports. There has been an increase in the application of the term "sport" to a wider set of non-physical challenges such as video games , also called esports (from "electronic sports"), especially due to the large scale of participation and organised competition, but these are not widely recognised by mainstream sports organisations. According to Council of Europe , European Sports Charter, article 2.i, " 'Sport' means all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim at expressing or improving physical fitness and mental well-being, forming social relationships or obtaining results in competition at all levels." There are opposing views on
1938-567: A sport should: They also recognise that sport can be primarily physical (such as rugby or athletics ), primarily mind (such as chess or Go ), predominantly motorised (such as Formula 1 or powerboating ), primarily co-ordination (such as snooker and other cue sports ), or primarily animal-supported (such as equestrian sport ). The inclusion of mind sports within sport definitions has not been universally accepted, leading to legal challenges from governing bodies in regards to being denied funding available to sports. Whilst GAISF recognises
2052-471: A sport, retain a policy of allowing only amateur sport . The Olympic Games started with a principle of amateur competition with those who practised a sport professionally considered to have an unfair advantage over those who practised it merely as a hobby. From 1971, Olympic athletes were allowed to receive compensation and sponsorship, and from 1986, the IOC decided to make all professional athletes eligible for
2166-401: A violation by lights at the base of the handle (see delivery below). The eye on the hog eliminates human error and the need for hog line officials. It is mandatory in high-level national and international competition, but its cost, around US$ 650 each, currently puts it beyond the reach of most curling clubs. The curling broom , or brush , is used to sweep the ice surface in the path of
2280-437: Is a problem at some national and international sporting contests. Female participation in sports continues to rise alongside the opportunity for involvement and the value of sports for child development and physical fitness . Despite increases in female participation during the last three decades, a gap persists in the enrollment figures between male and female players in sports-related teams. Female players account for 39% of
2394-416: Is closer to the button. Two hog lines are drawn 37 feet (11 m) from, and parallel to, the backboard. The hacks , which give the thrower something to push against when making the throw, are fixed 12 feet (3.7 m) behind each button. On indoor rinks, there are usually two fixed hacks, rubber-lined holes, one on each side of the centre line, with the inside edge no more than 3 inches (76 mm) from
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#17327832266552508-516: Is common for popular sports to attract large broadcast audiences, leading to rival broadcasters bidding large amounts of money for the rights to show certain events. The football World Cup attracts a global television audience of hundreds of millions; the 2006 final alone attracted an estimated worldwide audience of well over 700 million and the 2011 Cricket World Cup Final attracted an estimated audience of 135 million in India alone. In
2622-423: Is commonly used to enforce this rule. The sensor is in the handle of the stone and will indicate whether the stone was released before the near hog line. The lights on the stone handle will either light up green, indicating that the stone has been legally thrown, or red, in which case the illegally thrown stone will be immediately pulled from play instead of waiting for the stone to come to rest. The stone must clear
2736-439: Is designed for the sliding foot and the "gripper shoe" (usually known as a gripper ) for the foot that kicks off from the hack. The slider is designed to slide and typically has a Teflon sole. It is worn by the thrower during delivery from the hack and by sweepers or the skip to glide down the ice when sweeping or otherwise traveling down the sheet quickly. Stainless steel and "red brick" sliders with lateral blocks of PVC on
2850-435: Is extremely important. Large events, such as national/international championships, are typically held in an arena that presents a challenge to the ice maker, who must constantly monitor and adjust the ice and air temperatures as well as air humidity levels to ensure a consistent playing surface. It is common for each sheet of ice to have multiple sensors embedded in order to monitor surface temperature, as well as probes set up in
2964-462: Is in some cases severely regulated, and in others integral to the sport. According to A.T. Kearney , a consultancy, the global sporting industry is worth up to $ 620 billion as of 2013. The world's most accessible and practised sport is running , while association football is the most popular spectator sport. The word "sport" comes from the Old French desport meaning " leisure ", with
3078-407: Is placed in front of the foot now in the hack. Rising slightly from the hack, the thrower pulls the stone back (some older curlers may actually raise the stone in this backward movement) then lunges smoothly out from the hack pushing the stone ahead while the slider foot is moved in front of the gripper foot, which trails behind. The thrust from this lunge determines the weight , and hence the distance
3192-407: Is rare now to see a curler using a corn broom on a regular basis. Curling brushes may have fabric, hog hair, or horsehair heads. Modern curling brush handles are usually hollow tubes made of fibreglass or carbon fibre instead of a solid length of wooden dowel . These hollow tube handles are lighter and stronger than wooden handles, allowing faster sweeping and more downward force to be applied to
3306-503: Is to accumulate the highest score for a game ; points are scored for the stones resting closest to the centre of the house at the conclusion of each end , which is completed when both teams have thrown all of their stones once. A game usually consists of eight or ten ends. Players induce a curved path, described as curl , by causing the stone to slowly rotate as it slides. The path of the rock may be further influenced by two sweepers with brooms or brushes, who accompany it as it slides down
3420-481: Is used in most English dialects to describe the overall concept (e.g. "children taking part in sport"), with "sports" used to describe multiple activities (e.g. "football and rugby are the most popular sports in England"). American English uses "sports" for both terms. The precise definition of what differentiates a sport from other leisure activities varies between sources. The closest to an international agreement on
3534-842: The 1936 Summer Olympics held in Berlin , and the 1936 Winter Olympics held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen , to promote the Nazi ideology of the superiority of the Aryan race , and inferiority of the Jews and other " undesirables ". Germany used the Olympics to give off a peaceful image while secretly preparing for war. When apartheid was the official policy in South Africa, many sports people, particularly in rugby union , adopted
Curling - Misplaced Pages Continue
3648-646: The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) if she/he played or supported Association football , or other games seen to be of British origin. Until recently the GAA continued to ban the playing of football and rugby union at Gaelic venues. This ban, also known as Rule 42, is still enforced, but was modified to allow football and rugby to be played in Croke Park while Lansdowne Road was redeveloped into Aviva Stadium . Until recently, under Rule 21,
3762-539: The Olympic Games recognises both chess and bridge as sports. SportAccord , the international sports federation association, recognises five non-physical sports: chess, bridge, draughts , Go and xiangqi . However, they limit the number of mind games which can be admitted as sports. Sport is usually governed by a set of rules or customs , which serve to ensure fair competition. Winning can be determined by physical events such as scoring goals or crossing
3876-579: The Rink Rat , also became common later during this time period. Prior to the late sixties, Scottish curling brushes were used primarily by some of the Scots , as well as by recreational and elderly curlers, as a substitute for corn brooms, since the technique was easier to learn. In the late sixties, competitive curlers from Calgary , Alberta, such as John Mayer, Bruce Stewart, and, later, the world junior championship teams skipped by Paul Gowsell , proved that
3990-707: The Royal Caledonian Curling Club (founded as the Grand Caledonian Curling Club in 1838) as developing the first official rules for the sport. However, although not written as a "rule book", this is preceded by Rev James Ramsay of Gladsmuir , a member of the Duddingston Curling Club, who wrote An Account of the Game of Curling in 1811, which speculates on its origin and explains the method of play. In
4104-796: The World Curling Federation in Perth , which originated as a committee of the Royal Caledonian Curling Club, the mother club of curling. In the 19th century, several private railway stations in the United Kingdom were built to serve curlers attending bonspiels , such as those at Aboyne , Carsbreck , and Drummuir . Today, the sport is most firmly established in Canada , having been taken there by Scottish emigrants . The Royal Montreal Curling Club ,
4218-496: The lead ) throws, the players not delivering (the second and third ) sweep (see Sweeping , below). When the skip throws, the vice-skip takes their role. The skip , or the captain of the team, determines the desired stone placement and the required weight , turn , and line that will allow the stone to stop there. The placement will be influenced by the tactics at this point in the game, which may involve taking out, blocking, or tapping another stone. The skip may communicate
4332-463: The preface and the verses of a poem by Henry Adamson . The sport was (and still is, in Scotland and Scottish-settled regions like southern New Zealand) also known as "the roaring game" because of the sound the stones make while traveling over the pebble (droplets of water applied to the playing surface). The verbal noun curling is formed from the Scots (and English) verb curl , which describes
4446-489: The war on drugs encourage youth sport as a means to increase educational participation and to fight the illegal drug trade . According to the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children's Hospital , the biggest risk for youth sport is death or serious injury including concussion . These risks come from running, basketball, association football, volleyball, gridiron, gymnastics, and ice hockey. Youth sport in
4560-418: The weight , turn , line, and other tactics by calling or tapping a broom on the ice. In the case of a takeout, guard, or a tap, the skip will indicate the stones involved. Before delivery, the running surface of the stone is wiped clean and the path across the ice swept with the broom if necessary, since any dirt on the bottom of a stone or in its path can alter the trajectory and ruin the shot. Intrusion by
4674-419: The "thinking time" system, in which the delivering team's game timer stops as soon as the shooter's rock crosses the t-line during the delivery, is becoming more popular, especially in Canada. This system allows each team 38 minutes per 10 ends, or 30 minutes per 8 ends, to make strategic and tactical decisions, with 4 minutes and 30 seconds an end for extra ends. The "thinking time" system was implemented after it
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4788-483: The 1998 Olympics, Canada has dominated the sport with their men's teams winning gold in 2006 , 2010 , and 2014 , and silver in 1998 and 2002 . The women's team won gold in 1998 and 2014 , a silver in 2010 , and a bronze in 2002 and 2006. The mixed doubles team won gold in 2018 . The playing surface or curling sheet is defined by the World Curling Federation Rules of Curling. It is
4902-483: The Canada Curling Stone Company, which has been producing stones since 1992 and supplied the stones for the 2002 Winter Olympics . A handle is attached by a bolt running vertically through a hole in the centre of the stone. The handle allows the stone to be gripped and rotated upon release; on properly prepared ice the rotation will bend ( curl ) the path of the stone in the direction in which
5016-657: The GAA also banned members of the British security forces and members of the RUC from playing Gaelic games, but the advent of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 led to the eventual removal of the ban. Nationalism is often evident in the pursuit of sport, or in its reporting: people compete in national teams, or commentators and audiences can adopt a partisan view. On occasion, such tensions can lead to violent confrontation among players or spectators within and beyond
5130-523: The IOC or SportAccord are required to implement a testing programme, looking for a list of banned drugs, with suspensions or bans being placed on participants who test positive for banned substances. Violence in sports involves crossing the line between fair competition and intentional aggressive violence. Athletes, coaches, fans, and parents sometimes unleash violent behaviour on people or property, in misguided shows of loyalty, dominance, anger, or celebration. Rioting or hooliganism by fans in particular
5244-413: The Olympics, with the exceptions of boxing , and wrestling. Technology plays an important part in modern sport. It is a necessary part of some sports (such as motorsport), and it is used in others to improve performance. Some sports also use it to allow off-field decision making. Sports science is a widespread academic discipline, and can be applied to areas including athlete performance, such as
5358-518: The US is a $ 15 billion industry including equipment up to private coaching. Disabled or adaptive sports are played by people with a disability , including physical and intellectual disabilities . As many of these are based on existing sports modified to meet the needs of people with a disability, they are sometimes referred to as adapted sports . However, not all disabled sports are adapted; several sports that have been specifically created for people with
5472-687: The United States, the championship game of the NFL , the Super Bowl , has become one of the most watched television broadcasts of the year. Super Bowl Sunday is a de facto national holiday in America; the viewership being so great that in 2015, advertising space was reported as being sold at $ 4.5m for a 30-second slot. Sport can be undertaken on an amateur, professional or semi-professional basis, depending on whether participants are incentivised for participation (usually through payment of
5586-690: The Winter Olympics since Chamonix in 1924 and has been the exclusive manufacturer of curling stones for the Olympics since the 2006 Winter Olympics . Trefor granite comes from the Yr Eifl or Trefor Granite Quarry in the village of Trefor on the north coast of the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd , Wales and has produced granite since 1850. Trefor granite comes in shades of pink, blue, and grey. The quarry supplies curling stone granite exclusively to
5700-471: The action of repeatedly freezing water from eroding the stone. Ailsa Craig Common Green is a lesser quality granite than Blue Hone . In the past, most curling stones were made from Blue Hone , but the island is now a wildlife reserve, and the quarry is restricted by environmental conditions that exclude blasting. Kays of Scotland has been making curling stones in Mauchline, Ayrshire, since 1851 and has
5814-790: The activity will be enjoyed for its own sake. The well-known sentiment by sports journalist Grantland Rice , that it is "not that you won or lost but how you played the game", and the modern Olympic creed expressed by its founder Pierre de Coubertin : "The most important thing... is not winning but taking part" are typical expressions of this sentiment. Key principles of sport include that the result should not be predetermined, and that both sides should have equal opportunity to win. Rules are in place to ensure fair play, but participants can break these rules in order to gain advantage. Participants may cheat in order to unfairly increase their chance of winning, or in order to achieve other advantages such as financial gains. The widespread existence of gambling on
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#17327832266555928-415: The ancient Olympics up to the present century. Industrialisation has brought motorised transportation and increased leisure time , letting people attend and follow spectator sports and participate in athletic activities. These trends continued with the advent of mass media and global communication. Professionalism became prevalent, further adding to the increase in sport's popularity, as sports fans followed
6042-444: The backboard. These lines divide the house into quarters. The house consists of a centre circle (the button ) and three concentric rings, of diameters 4, 8, and 12 feet, formed by painting or laying a coloured vinyl sheet under the ice and are usually distinguished by colour. A stone must at least touch the outer ring in order to score (see Scoring below); otherwise, the rings are merely a visual aid for aiming and judging which stone
6156-408: The basic technical aspects of curling is knowing when to sweep. When the ice in front of the stone is swept, a stone will usually travel both further and straighter, and in some situations one of those is not desirable. For example, a stone may be traveling too fast (said to have too much weight), but require sweeping to prevent curling into another stone. The team must decide which is better: getting by
6270-421: The broom head with reduced shaft flex. In 2014, new "directional fabric" brooms were introduced, which could influence the path of a curling stone better than the existing brooms. Concerns arose that these brooms would alter the fundamentals of the sport by reducing the level of skill required and giving players an unfair advantage; at least thirty-four elite teams signed a statement pledging not to use them. This
6384-402: The centre line and the front edge on the hack line. A single moveable hack may also be used. The ice may be natural, but is usually frozen by a refrigeration plant pumping a brine solution through numerous pipes fixed lengthwise at the bottom of a shallow pan of water. Most curling clubs have an ice maker whose main job is to care for the ice. At the major curling championships, ice maintenance
6498-471: The community in sports such as mass media campaigns, educational sessions, and policy changes. There is also no high-quality studies that investigate the effect of such interventions in promoting healthy behaviour change in the community. sports is one of the important part of life Benito Mussolini used the 1934 FIFA World Cup , which was held in Italy, to showcase Fascist Italy . Adolf Hitler also used
6612-483: The conscientious approach that they should not appear in competitive sports there. Some feel this was an effective contribution to the eventual demolition of the policy of apartheid, others feel that it may have prolonged and reinforced its worst effects. In the history of Ireland, Gaelic sports were connected with cultural nationalism . Until the mid-20th century a person could have been banned from playing Gaelic football , hurling , or other sports administered by
6726-452: The curling brush could be just as (or more) effective without all the blisters common to corn broom use. During that time period, there was much debate in competitive curling circles as to which sweeping device was more effective: brush or broom. Eventually, the brush won out with the majority of curlers making the switch to the less costly and more efficient brush. Today, brushes have replaced traditional corn brooms at every level of curling; it
6840-519: The day before had the gratification of seeing a printed specimen copy of his poem The Luggie , published eventually by the exertions of Sydney Dobell . He was buried in the Auld Aisle Churchyard, Kirkintilloch, where in 1865 a monument was erected by friends far and near to his memory. The Luggie , the principal poem of Gray, is a kind of reverie in which the scenes and events of his childhood and his early aspirations are mingled with
6954-544: The early 16th century includes a curling stone inscribed with the date 1511 found (along with another bearing the date 1551) when an old pond was drained at Dunblane, Scotland . The world's oldest curling stone and the world's oldest football are now kept in the same museum (the Stirling Smith Art Gallery and Museum ) in Stirling . The first written reference to a contest using stones on ice coming from
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#17327832266557068-416: The early history of curling, the playing stones were simply flat-bottomed stones from rivers or fields, which lacked a handle and were of inconsistent size, shape, and smoothness. Some early stones had holes for a finger and the thumb, akin to ten-pin bowling balls . Unlike today, the thrower had little control over the 'curl' or velocity and relied more on luck than on precision, skill, and strategy. The sport
7182-561: The end of the match time. Artifacts and structures suggest sport in China as early as 2000 BC. Gymnastics appears to have been popular in China's ancient past. Monuments to the Pharaohs indicate that a number of sports, including swimming and fishing, were well-developed and regulated several thousands of years ago in ancient Egypt . Other Egyptian sports included javelin throwing, high jump, and wrestling. Ancient Persian sports such as
7296-595: The exclusive rights to the Ailsa Craig granite, granted by the Marquess of Ailsa , whose family has owned the island since 1560. According to the 1881 Census , Andrew Kay employed 30 people in his curling stone factory in Mauchline. The last harvest of Ailsa Craig granite by Kays took place in 2013, after a hiatus of 11 years; 2,000 tons were harvested, sufficient to fill anticipated orders through at least 2020. Kays have been involved in providing curling stones for
7410-585: The exploits of professional athletes – all while enjoying the exercise and competition associated with amateur participation in sports. Since the turn of the 21st century, there has been increasing debate about whether transgender sports people should be able to participate in sport events that conform with their post-transition gender identity . Sportsmanship is an attitude that strives for fair play, courtesy toward teammates and opponents, ethical behaviour and integrity, and grace in victory or defeat. Sportsmanship expresses an aspiration or ethos that
7524-440: The far hog line or else be removed from play ( hogged ); an exception is made if a stone fails to come to rest beyond the far hog line after rebounding from a stone in play just past the hog line. After the stone is delivered, its trajectory is influenced by the two sweepers under instruction from the skip. Sweeping is done for several reasons: to make the stone travel further, to decrease the amount of curl, and to clean debris from
7638-413: The foot that kicks off from the hack during delivery and is designed to grip the ice. It may have a normal athletic shoe sole or a special layer of rubbery material applied to the sole of a thickness to match the sliding shoe. The toe of the hack foot shoe may also have a rubberised coating on the top surface or a flap that hangs over the toe to reduce wear on the top of the shoe as it drags on the ice behind
7752-511: The front edge of the stone is turning, especially as the stone slows. Handles are coloured to identify each team, two popular colours in major tournaments being red and yellow. In competition, an electronic handle known as the Eye on the Hog may be fitted to detect hog line violations. This electronically detects whether the thrower's hand is in contact with the handle as it passes the hog line and indicates
7866-441: The games only eight ends. Most tournaments on that tour are eight ends, as are the vast majority of recreational games. In international competition, each side is given 73 minutes to complete all of its throws. Each team is also allowed two minute-long timeouts per 10-end game. If extra ends are required, each team is allowed 10 minutes of playing time to complete its throws and one added 60-second timeout for each extra end. However,
7980-414: The host broadcaster, a number of different technologies are used during an umpire or player review, including instant replays, Hawk-Eye , Hot Spot and Real Time Snickometer . Hawk-Eye is also used in tennis to challenge umpiring decisions. Research suggests that sports have the capacity to connect youth to positive adult role models and provide positive development opportunities, as well as promote
8094-417: The ice is the running surface , a narrow, flat annulus or ring, 6.4 to 12.7 millimetres ( 1 ⁄ 4 to 1 ⁄ 2 in) wide and about 130 millimetres (5 in) in diameter; the sides of the stone bulge convex down to the ring, with the inside of the ring hollowed concave to clear the ice. This concave bottom was first proposed by J. S. Russell of Toronto, Ontario, Canada sometime after 1870, and
8208-427: The impact of losing on less able participants, there has been an introduction of non-competitive physical activity to traditionally competitive events such as school sports days , although moves like this are often controversial. In competitive events, participants are graded or classified based on their "result" and often divided into groups of comparable performance, (e.g. gender, weight and age). The measurement of
8322-509: The impact of technical advantage between participants. For example, in 2010, full-body, non-textile swimsuits were banned by FINA , as they were enhancing swimmers' performances. The increase in technology has also allowed many decisions in sports matches to be taken, or reviewed, off-field, with another official using instant replays to make decisions. In some sports, players can now challenge decisions made by officials. In Association football , goal-line technology makes decisions on whether
8436-556: The incumbent president is more likely to win, and if the Redskins lose, then the opposition candidate is more likely to win; this has become known as the Redskins Rule . David Gray (poet) David Gray (29 January 1838 – 3 December 1861) was a Scottish poet, from Merkland, Kirkintilloch. He died in his hometown aged 23. His friend and fellow poet Robert Buchanan wrote his biography in 1900. The son of
8550-431: The learning and application of life skills . In recent years the use of sport to reduce crime , as well as to prevent violent extremism and radicalization , has become more widespread, especially as a tool to improve self-esteem , enhance social bonds and provide participants with a feeling of purpose. There is no high-quality evidence that shows the effectiveness of interventions to increase sports participation of
8664-634: The little stream that ran through Merkland. His most intimate companion at this time was Robert Buchanan , the poet; and in May 1860 the two agreed to proceed to London, with the idea of finding literary employment. Shortly after his arrival in London Gray introduced himself to Monckton Milnes , afterwards Lord Houghton, with whom he had previously corresponded. Lord Houghton tried to persuade him to return to Scotland, but Gray insisted on staying in London. He
8778-399: The motion of the stone. Kilsyth Curling Club claims to be the first club in the world, having been formally constituted in 1716; it is still in existence today. Kilsyth also claims the oldest purpose-built curling pond in the world at Colzium , in the form of a low dam creating a shallow pool some 100 by 250 metres (330 by 820 ft) in size. The International Olympic Committee recognises
8892-456: The music of the stream which he celebrates. The series of sonnets , In the Shadows, was composed during the latter part of his illness. Encyclopædia Britannica says that most of his poems necessarily bear traces of immaturity, and lines may frequently be found in them which are mere echoes from Thomson , Wordsworth or Tennyson , but they possess, nevertheless, distinct individuality, and show
9006-599: The necessity of competition as a defining element of a sport, with almost all professional sports involving competition, and governing bodies requiring competition as a prerequisite of recognition by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) or GAISF. Other bodies advocate widening the definition of sport to include all physical activity. For instance, the Council of Europe include all forms of physical exercise, including those competed just for fun. In order to widen participation, and reduce
9120-481: The oldest definition in English from around 1300 being "anything humans find amusing or entertaining". Other meanings include gambling and events staged for the purpose of gambling; hunting; and games and diversions, including ones that require exercise. Roget's defines the noun sport as an "activity engaged in for relaxation and amusement" with synonyms including diversion and recreation. The singular term "sport"
9234-556: The oldest established sports club still active in North America , was established in 1807. The first curling club in the United States was established in 1830, and the sport was introduced to Switzerland and Sweden before the end of the 19th century, also by Scots. Today, curling is played all over Europe and has spread to Brazil, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, China, and Korea. The first world championship for curling
9348-401: The other stone, but traveling too far, or hitting the stone. Sport Sport is a form of physical activity or game . Often competitive and organized , sports use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills . They also provide enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Many sports exist, with different participant numbers, some are done by
9462-460: The pebbled ice. The pebble, along with the concave bottom of the stone, decreases the friction between the stone and the ice, allowing the stone to travel further. As the stone moves over the pebble, any rotation of the stone causes it to curl , or travel along a curved path. The amount of curl (commonly referred to as the feet of curl ) can change during a game as the pebble wears; the ice maker must monitor this and be prepared to scrape and re-pebble
9576-416: The purpose. Central Canadian curlers often used 'irons' rather than stones until the early 1900s; Canada is the only country known to have done so, while others experimented with wood or ice-filled tins. Outdoor curling was very popular in Scotland between the 16th and 19th centuries because the climate provided good ice conditions every winter. Scotland is home to the international governing body for curling,
9690-696: The records of Paisley Abbey , Renfrewshire , in February 1541. Two paintings, " Winter Landscape with a Bird Trap " and " The Hunters in the Snow " (both dated 1565) by Pieter Bruegel the Elder , depict Flemish peasants curling, albeit without brooms; Scotland and the Low Countries had strong trading and cultural links during this period, which is also evident in the history of golf . The word curling first appears in print in 1620 in Perth, Scotland , in
9804-572: The referee. A video referee (commonly known as a Television Match Official or TMO) can also use replays to help decision-making in rugby (both league and union ). In international cricket, an umpire can ask the Third umpire for a decision, and the third umpire makes the final decision. Since 2008, a decision review system for players to review decisions has been introduced and used in ICC -run tournaments, and optionally in other matches. Depending on
9918-412: The result may be objective or subjective, and corrected with "handicaps" or penalties. In a race, for example, the time to complete the course is an objective measurement. In gymnastics or diving the result is decided by a panel of judges, and therefore subjective. There are many shades of judging between boxing and mixed martial arts, where victory is assigned by judges if neither competitor has lost at
10032-596: The result of sports events can affect the results. A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showed that when the home team wins the game before the election, the incumbent candidates can increase their share of the vote by 1.5 per cent. A loss had the opposite effect, and the effect is greater for higher-profile teams or unexpected wins and losses. Also, when Washington Redskins win their final game before an election, then
10146-450: The results of sports events creates a motivation for match fixing , where a participant or participants deliberately work to ensure a given outcome rather than simply playing to win. The competitive nature of sport encourages some participants to attempt to enhance their performance through the use of medicines, or through other means such as increasing the volume of blood in their bodies through artificial means . All sports recognised by
10260-421: The seating area (to monitor humidity) and in the compressor room (to monitor brine supply and return temperatures). The surface of the ice is maintained at a temperature of around 23 °F (−5 °C). A key part of the preparation of the playing surface is the spraying of water droplets onto the ice, which form pebble on freezing. The pebbled ice surface resembles an orange peel, and the stone moves on top of
10374-501: The sheet and sweep the ice in front of the stone. "Sweeping a rock" decreases the friction, which makes the stone travel a straighter path (with less curl) and a longer distance. A great deal of strategy and teamwork go into choosing the ideal path and placement of a stone for each situation, and the skills of the curlers determine the degree to which the stone will achieve the desired result. Evidence that curling existed in Scotland in
10488-432: The sole are also available as alternatives to Teflon. Most shoes have a full-sole sliding surface, but some shoes have a sliding surface covering only the outline of the shoe and other enhancements with the full-sole slider. Some shoes have small disc sliders covering the front and heel portions or only the front portion of the foot, which allow more flexibility in the sliding foot for curlers playing with tuck deliveries. When
10602-558: The specific phenomenon of spectator sport. Both amateur and professional sports attract spectators, both in person at the sport venue, and through broadcast media including radio , television and internet broadcast. Both attendance in person and viewing remotely can incur a sometimes substantial charge, such as an entrance ticket, or pay-per-view television broadcast. Sports league and tournament are two common arrangements to organise sport teams or individual athletes into competing against each other continuously or periodically. It
10716-658: The sporting venue, as in the Football War . These trends are seen by many as contrary to the fundamental ethos of sport being carried on for its own sake and for the enjoyment of its participants. Sport and politics collided in the 1972 Olympics in Munich. Masked men entered the hotel of the Israeli Olympic team and killed many of their men. This was known as the Munich massacre . A study of US elections has shown that
10830-503: The stone (see sweeping ) and is also often used as a balancing aid during delivery of the stone. Prior to the 1950s, most curling brooms were made of corn strands and were similar to household brooms of the day. In 1958, Fern Marchessault of Montreal inverted the corn straw in the centre of the broom. This style of corn broom was referred to as the Blackjack . Artificial brooms made from human-made fabrics rather than corn, such as
10944-460: The stone will travel. Balance may be assisted by a broom held in the free hand with the back of the broom down so that it slides. One older writer suggests the player keep "a basilisk glance" at the mark. There are two common types of delivery currently, the typical flat-foot delivery and the Manitoba tuck delivery where the curler slides on the front ball of their foot. When the player releases
11058-429: The stone's path. Sweeping is able to make the stone travel further and straighter by slightly melting the ice under the brooms, thus decreasing the friction as the stone travels across that part of the ice. The stones curl more as they slow down, so sweeping early in travel tends to increase distance as well as straighten the path, and sweeping after sideways motion is established can increase the sideways distance. One of
11172-413: The stone, a rotation (called the turn) is imparted by a slight clockwise or counter-clockwise twist of the handle from around the two or ten o'clock position to the twelve o'clock on release. A typical rate of turn is about 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 rotations before coming to a rest. The stone must be released before its front edge crosses the near hog line. In major tournaments, the " Eye on the Hog " sensor
11286-563: The surface prior to each game. The curling stone (also sometimes called a rock in North America) is made of granite and is specified by the World Curling Federation, which requires a weight between 19.96 and 17.24 kilograms (44 and 38 lb), a maximum circumference of 914 millimetres (36 in), and a minimum height of 114 millimetres ( 4 + 1 ⁄ 2 in). The only part of the stone in contact with
11400-576: The thorn. Autumn, among her drooping marigolds, Weeps all her garnered sheaves, and empty folds, And dripping orchards – plundered and forlorn. The season is a dead one, and I die ! No more, no more for me the spring shall make A resurrection in the earth and take The death from out her heart. O God, I die ! The cold throat mist creeps nearer, till I breathe Corruption. Drop stark night upon my death ! The Luggie and other Poems , with an introduction by R. Monckton Milnes, and
11514-455: The thrower. Other types of equipment include: The purpose of a game is to score points by getting stones closer to the house centre, or the "button", than the other team's stones. Players from either team alternate in taking shots from the far side of the sheet. An end is complete when all eight rocks from each team have been delivered, a total of sixteen stones. If the teams are tied at the end of regulation, often extra ends are played to break
11628-556: The tie. The winner is the team with the highest score after all ends have been completed (see Scoring below). A game may be conceded if winning the game is infeasible. International competitive games are generally ten ends, so most of the national championships that send a representative to the World Championships or Olympics also play ten ends. However, there is a movement on the World Curling Tour to make
11742-575: The time of Ancient Greece and the military culture and the development of sport in Greece influenced one another considerably. Sport became such a prominent part of their culture that the Greeks created the Olympic Games , which in ancient times were held every four years in a small village in the Peloponnesus called Olympia . Sports have been increasingly organised and regulated from the time of
11856-400: The time was played outdoors, were retroactively awarded for the 1924 Winter Games, with the gold medal won by Great Britain, two silver medals by Sweden, and the bronze by France. A demonstration tournament was also held during the 1932 Winter Olympic Games between four teams from Canada and four from the United States, with Canada winning 12 games to 4. Since the sport's official addition in
11970-465: The total participation in US interscholastic athletics. Certain sports are mixed-gender , allowing (or even requiring) men and women to play on the same team. One example of this is Baseball5 , which is the first mixed-gender sport to have been admitted into an Olympic event. Youth sport presents children with opportunities for fun, socialisation, forming peer relationships, physical fitness , and athletic scholarships . Activists for education and
12084-403: The traditional Iranian martial art of Zoorkhaneh had a close connection to warfare skills. Among other sports that originated in ancient Persia are polo and jousting . Various traditional games of India such as Kho kho and Kabbadi have been played for thousands of years. The kabaddi was played potentially as a preparation for hunting. A wide range of sports were already established by
12198-460: The use of video analysis to fine-tune technique, or to equipment, such as improved running shoes or competitive swimwear . Sports engineering emerged as a discipline in 1998 with an increasing focus not just on materials design but also the use of technology in sport, from analytics and big data to wearable technology . In order to control the impact of technology on fair play, governing bodies frequently have specific rules that are set to control
12312-402: Was dubbed the broomgate controversy . The new brooms were temporarily banned by the World Curling Federation and Curling Canada for the 2015–2016 season. Since 2016, only one standardized brush head is approved by the World Curling Federation for competitive play. Curling shoes are similar to ordinary athletic shoes except for special soles; the slider shoe (usually known as a "slider")
12426-500: Was held for the first time in 2018 ). In February 2002, the International Olympic Committee retroactively decided that the curling competition from the 1924 Winter Olympics (originally called Semaine des Sports d'Hiver , or International Winter Sports Week) would be considered official Olympic events and no longer be considered demonstration events. Thus, the first Olympic medals in curling , which at
12540-717: Was limited to men and was known as the Scotch Cup , held in Falkirk and Edinburgh , Scotland , in 1959. The first world title was won by the Canadian team from Regina, Saskatchewan , skipped by Ernie Richardson . (The skip is the team member who calls the shots; see below.) Curling has been a medal sport in the Winter Olympic Games since the 1998 Winter Olympics . It currently includes men's, women's, and mixed doubles tournaments (the mixed doubles event
12654-456: Was often played on frozen rivers although purpose-built ponds were later created in many Scottish towns. For example, the Scottish poet David Gray describes whisky-drinking curlers on the Luggie Water at Kirkintilloch . In Darvel , East Ayrshire , the weavers relaxed by playing curling matches using the heavy stone weights from the looms' warp beams , fitted with a detachable handle for
12768-414: Was recognized that using shots which take more time for the stones to come to rest was being penalized in terms of the time the teams had available compared to teams which primarily use hits which require far less time per shot. The process of sliding a stone down the sheet is known as the delivery or throw . Players, with the exception of the skip, take turns throwing and sweeping; when one player (e.g.,
12882-649: Was subsequently adopted by Scottish stone manufacturer Andrew Kay. The granite for the stones comes from two sources: Ailsa Craig , an island off the Ayrshire coast of Scotland, and the Trefor Granite Quarry, North of the Llŷn Peninsula , Gwynedd in Wales . These locations provide four variations in colour known as Ailsa Craig Common Green , Ailsa Craig Blue Hone , Blue Trefor and Red Trefor . Blue Hone has very low water absorption, which prevents
12996-564: Was unsuccessful in his efforts to place Gray's poem, The Luggie , in Cornhill Magazine , but gave him some light literary work. He also showed him great kindness when a cold which had seized him assumed the serious form of consumption , and sent him to Torquay ; but as the disease made rapid progress, an irresistible longing seized Gray to return to Merkland, where he arrived in January 1861, and died on 3 December following, having
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