"As a sport most people pay intense attention to for two weeks every four years and then not at all the rest of the time, curling can be slightly impenetrable to the casual viewer; its intricacies and shibboleths even more so. As the cheating brouhaha between Sweden and Canada enters Day 3, we thought it would be useful to answer some questions you might have over this icy scandal."
"What happened? On Feb. 13, Canada defeated Sweden 8-6 in a men's team round-robin match. The round-robin matches determine who gets into the medal rounds. Early in the game, Sweden accused Canada's curlers of "double-touching" their stones after they'd passed the hog line, and asked officials to keep an eye on the Canadians for further violations. In response, Canada petulantly asked officials to monitor the Swedes for illegal shots as well."
"Wait. What is double-touching? Curlers must release their stone before any part of it crosses the hog line, the green line that stretches the width of the ice. To give the stone a nudge after it has passed the line would give curlers a little extra control over their shots, and is illegal. A double-touched stone is to be removed from play, as if it had never been shot."
On Feb. 13 Canada defeated Sweden 8-6 in a men's team round-robin curling match that determines entry to the medal rounds. Early in the game Sweden accused Canada of double-touching stones after they passed the hog line and asked officials to monitor the Canadians for further violations. Canada asked officials to monitor the Swedes for illegal shots in return. Late in the match Marc Kennedy and Oskar Eriksson exchanged angry words, including expletives. Double-touching occurs when a player releases a stone after it crosses the hog line and then nudges it, which is illegal and leads to removal of the stone. Curling relies heavily on players policing themselves, so officials often do not impose penalties.
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