The most high-profile sport of the Winter Games is also practiced in Catalonia

BarcelonaEvery four years, millions of people are captivated by curling, a sport in which stones are rolled across an ice rink, attempting to land them in the center of a target about 45 meters away, knocking the opposing team's stones out of the way. Social media is flooded with people imitating the athletes' movements and analyzing plays. The Sweden-Canada match ended in a heated exchange as the Swedes accused their opponents of cheating, with millions of users trying to determine who was right. Every four years, curling shines. "The Olympic Games are an opportunity for people to take the plunge and, after seeing it on television, be encouraged to try it," explains Carles de Moxó, president of Curling Puigcerdà, one of the clubs in Catalonia. Many people don't know it, but curling is also played here.

In fact, this weekend three Catalan clubs are competing in the Spanish Men's First Division Championship in Jaca: Puigcerdà, Club de Cúrling Sporting, Olla de Lliçà d'Amunt, and Barcelona Cúrling Club. Puigcerdà is sending a young team eager to learn. "Competing in the First Division is always a challenge, but doing so in an Olympic year like this one motivates us even more. Curling is experiencing a moment of peak international exposure, and we want to continue developing players so that one day they can aspire to compete at the highest level," says the president of the club from Cerda. He won't be in Jaca, as he's traveling with some more experienced players to Prague to participate in an international tournament. "The best thing about curling is that anyone can play, even at an advanced age. And there's a great community: clubs like to travel to other countries to meet other players. It's a captivating sport," he adds, already picturing himself on the Prague rink, "dedicated solely to curling."

At these Games, some curling athletes have gone viral for their passion, like the Italian Stefania Constantini. The spectacular plays of the Olympians have sparked a desire to learn more about the sport. And the club in Puigcerdà wants to capitalize on that. In fact, they are organizing an open day on March 15th with talks, training sessions, and matches. Club members will have to pay five euros, and non-members eight. "It's a sport open to everyone from twelve years old up to any age. I played it until recently with my father, who played until a very advanced age," says Carles de Moxó, while identifying the major problem faced by curling enthusiasts: "We don't have adequate facilities. We share the ice rink with ice that isn't ideal for curling, as it damages the ice."

The story of the Puigcerdà club began in 2003, when the Spanish Championship was held at the town's ice rink, which encouraged locals to sign up for a course. "We've organized competitions and courses, and we're proud to host the only international tournament south of the Pyrenees, inviting clubs from abroad. Especially from Europe, but we've also had clubs from Canada. Curling has this social aspect; it's fun to meet people, and we have friendly tournaments where tradition dictates who's in charge. There have been other clubs in Catalonia, but some have folded. Others compete intermittently. In Barcelona, ​​every January, a group of enthusiasts, with a great sense of humor, check if the Vallvidrera reservoir has frozen over to see if they can play. It never does."

Abroad, the situation is different. The people of Puigcerdá have seen it in Switzerland, where they have large rinks. The Mecca of this sport is Canada, where there are more than a million registered players competing regularly, in addition to hundreds of rinks throughout the country. "There, the king of sports is ice hockey, and then comes curling. A huge number of people play it. In our town, we probably only have about fifty registered players right now," explains the president.

The magic stones

The sport seems to have originated centuries ago in Scotland, where medieval engravings depict it being played on frozen lakes. And it's true that Scotland often produces excellent players. In fact, without Scotland, there would be no curling, as the famous stones that slide across the ice are made from granite from a small Scottish island, Ailsa Craig. "These are unique stones, weighing twenty kilos each. And all the stones used in the Games are made from the granite of this island. To make it even more special, because it's a protected area, workers can only enter once every ten years to extract the granite needed to make the stones. The company Kays of Scotland goes in and works with it," explains Carles de Moxó. In the 21st century, granite has only been extracted three times: in 2002, 2013, and 2020.

Approximately 70% of the world's curling stones are made from granite from this small island, now uninhabited. The rest are made from material from Wales. But the Olympic Committee only recognizes those made with Scottish granite, which are sent to Canada for processing before being returned to Europe. Then, they are purchased by clubs and federations, where they are cherished "like treasures." "Luckily, they last for many years. Because they aren't cheap, of course," explains De Moxó. Sometimes they cost more than 12,000 euros.

The stones are the essence of the game, but so are the brooms, an element that allows people to create viral videos on social media imitating the players. "We have some technicians who have also gone viral during these Olympic Games, who sprinkle water on the ice. A few small drops that allow us to perform the sweep. It's a kind of aquaplaning, to put it simply. Applying the broom to the drops allows the stones to glide a little more." It's a fascinating sport that needs facilities. "We're in talks to see if we can have a curling rink just for curling in Puigcerdà. There's a project, but it's a long process and there are things to negotiate. There's also talk of an ice rink shared with other sports in the Barcelona metropolitan area, but we'll have to wait," adds one of the great advocates of a sport with centuries of tradition thanks to its hands.