Despite not having any dedicated curling ice in the entire country and very little funding, Lithuania is heading to the 2025 World Women’s Curling Championship. How did a country about the size of West Virginia with a population less than Mississippi accomplish this? A lot of it has to do with their skip, Virginija Paulauskaite. The president of the Lithuanian curling federation, Tadas Vyskupaitis, joins us to tell us about his country, how their national team was able to qualify for worlds and ...
Jan 27, 2025•49 min
Jonathan’s Minnesota Golden Gophers and Ryan’s Virginia Tech Hokies are finally going to meet on the gridiron. If you can get through 15 minutes of Gopher-Hokie talk, we will also cover Jonathan’s experience at the 2024 European Curling Championship, what under-the-radar player impressed him most, our futures in curling and Christmas presents.
Dec 31, 2024•53 min
The 2024 European Curling Championships take place Nov. 16-23 and our very own Professor of Peel, Jonathan Havercroft, will be there in the A division representing England. Here we take a moment to wish Jonathan and the rest of the team good luck!
Nov 12, 2024•58 min
Curling nations will earn points toward Olympic qualification based on how they do at this year’s (and next year’s) men’s and women’s world championships. But should that be the case? Scottish curling champion Ken Horton presents his plan for determining Olympic berths without any points coming from worlds. Hear why he believes this plan will benefit not only the high-performance teams battling for Olympic spots, but even more so the grassroots and competitive club curlers.
Mar 13, 2024•57 min
Jonathan and Ryan are back to talk about Jonathan’s experience representing England at the European Curling Championships. His English men’s team not only secured a spot in next year’s A-pool for their country, but captured the gold medal.
Jan 25, 2024•46 min
Curling Jamaica is scheduled to make its competitive WCF debut at the Pan-Continental Curling Championships. Hear about the origins or this federation and how it’s inspiring a new face of curling in our interviews with Ian Robertson and Husani Blaze. Curling Jamaica Follow Jamaican Curling on Facebook Brooklyn Curling Center...
Oct 23, 2023•1 hr 1 min
Marco Mariani is back to tell us about his experience coaching China’s women’s curling team at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing. First, we learn why his lineup changed so much going into the Olympics and the one thing he thinks would have allowed Han Yu’s team to make the medal round. Then, we hear about his interactions with Chinese officials and his relationship with his fellow coaches, Peja Lindholm and Sören Grahn. Finally, he tells us what he thinks the future holds for curling in China. Marco ...
Jul 24, 2023•25 min
This is the first of a two-part interview with Italian curling coach and Olympic curler Marco Mariani. In part one, we focus on the current state of curling in Italy as they prepare to host the 2026 Olympics. Marco is not only currently coaching the Italian junior teams, but is also on the committee responsible for setting up the curling competition in 2026. He also tells us how curling has changed in the country since he represented Italy at the 2006 Olympics and what programs have allowed the ...
Jul 06, 2023•46 min
This episode takes us near the Arctic Circle, but not quite North of it. We talk to Peter Van Strien from Iqaluit Curling Club, who volunteers there and has represented Nunavut nationally. Peter tells us about living in Nunavut, the unique obstacles his club faces for regular ice time and the progress they’ve made growing the sport with the territory’s youth. Nunavut Curling Association Iqaluit Curling Club...
May 31, 2023•42 min
Melvin Lee, a curling consultant from Ottawa, joins us once again to talk about his recent curling experiences. Melvin is trying to grow the sport within the BIPOC community of his hometown and tells us about his experience hosting a learn to curl at his home club. He also discusses his recent trip to Korea where he curling with 2018 Olympic silver medalists Team Kim.
May 09, 2023•50 min
Ling-Yue Hung from Team Hong Kong gives us a beginner’s guide to rock matching, including whether or not it can help club-level curlers. She also tells us about her iOS app, CurlingRockBook, which helps curlers of all abilities track the rocks they use at different clubs and competitions.
Feb 24, 2023•58 min
The 22 year-old GM of Rose City Curling Club in Camrose, AB, Kiren Scorah, tells us how their club has attracted new members, grown their Little Rocks program and fostered community among their membership. Rose City Curling Club Follow RCCC on Facebook
Feb 14, 2023•1 hr 3 min
We break down the latest news in curling, including a short-lived Curling Canada pregnancy policy and its hiring for former world champion David Murdoch from Scotland to lead its high performance program.
Feb 06, 2023•45 min
In this show we review the 2022 European Curling Championships. We discuss the impact the no-tick rule had on the event and what to watch for in events going forward with this relatively new rule. Next, we break down how Denmark and Scotland were able to bring home gold and which teams surprised us. Finally, … Continue reading Is lead now the toughest position in curling? →
Dec 01, 2022•45 min
It’s time for our annual Bad Beer Bet with the fine folks from the Game of Stones podcast. Each year we all make picks for the European A and B pools and the podcast with the fewest points has to drink the beer of the winner’s choosing. In this episode, Ryan from Rocks Across the … Continue reading Previewing the European women’s field w/ Scott Graham of Game of Stones →...
Nov 17, 2022•34 min
We begin this show by recapping co-host Jonathan Havercroft’s exploits at the 2022 World Mixed Curling Championships. Then, we shift to recent curling news and results from the USA, the inaugural Pan-Continental Curling Championships and the upcoming European Curling Championships.
Nov 10, 2022•51 min
USA Curling’s CEO, Jeff Plush, is under fire for how he responded when notified of allegations of abuse and sexual misconduct. He received allegations against a soccer coach while he was commissioner of the National Women’s Soccer League in 2015 and how he handled them calls into question whether curlers can have confidence in him … Continue reading USA Curling deserves better from its leadership →...
Oct 07, 2022•31 min
What was it like at the world’s highest bonspiel? Find out in this episode all about curling in India with PN Raju. First, we talk about how he discovered curling and started playing in Oakland, Calif. Then, he tells us about the history of the Curling Federation of India, their recent national championships held in … Continue reading Curling in India w/ PN Raju →
Aug 30, 2022•38 min
Recently, USA Curling’s board of directors voted to remove the regional association representing clubs in the Eastern United States, the Grand National Curling Club. We dive into why this happened, what this means, possible resolutions and the next steps for the two organizations. Joining us are Kristen Conrad, vice chair of the GNCC board of … Continue reading What’s next in the USA Curling/GNCC situation →
Aug 19, 2022•1 hr 34 min
Gery Hermans from Belgian Curling returns to the podcast to discuss the world senior curling championship. Jonathan and Gery review the 2022 world senior curling championship and the Gery replays two interviews he completed at the event. The first is with Canadian Team Coach Bill Tschirhart. Bill is also the host of the podcast “A … Continue reading World Seniors Curling w/ Gery Hermans →
Jun 24, 2022•39 min
Today we are joined by Germany’s Klaudius Harsch recent winner of two world championship medals: a bronze in mixed doubles with his partner Pia-Lisa Schöll, and a silver as part of Germany’s junior men’s team. We recorded the interview between the two events. We discuss what curling is like in Germany. How he got into … Continue reading A Conversation with Germany’s Klaudius Harsch →
May 26, 2022•48 min
In this episode Jonathan interviews two people who helped the Ukraine national team leave Kyiv, find a new training facility in Finland, and compete in the European C Curling Championship. First we talk with Natalia Menzhega the Executive Secretary of the Ukrainian Curling Federation. She talks about the history of curling in Ukraine, how she … Continue reading How The Curling Community is Helping the Ukrainian National Team →...
May 09, 2022•41 min
Latvia’s wheelchair curling team, led by skip Poļina Rožkova, made its Paralympic debut at the 2022 Games in Beijing. Poļina tells us about the team’s road from the B division to Paralympic qualification and takes us behind the scenes in Beijing. This includes her team’s conversations about whether or not to potentially play against Russia … Continue reading Latvia’s Road to the Paralympics w/ Poļina Rožkova →...
Apr 11, 2022•1 hr 4 min
Sweden captured four curling medals during the Olympics and Paralympics in 2022, including gold for Niklas Edin. But did this unparalleled success lead to more curlers in the country? We talk to development officer Sara Carlsson to find out all about curling in Sweden: from how their high performance program is set up to the … Continue reading Did Olympic and Paralympic success mean more curlers in Sweden? →...
Mar 28, 2022•55 min
Stewart Pimblett has been a dedicated curler even before he started playing. His journey to try the sport at the rink in Kelso, Scotland was a harrowing one and is one of the most incredible “how I started curling” stories you’ll hear. He went on to establish the Northern Ice Wheelchair Curling Club and has … Continue reading Starting a wheelchair curling club w/ Stewart Pimblett →
Mar 08, 2022•1 hr
Get to know each of the wheelchair curling teams scheduled to compete at the 2022 Paralympics in Beijing. Please note this was recorded and posted before a definitive decision has been made on the participation of the team representing the Russian Paralympic Committee. 2022 Paralympic Curling Schedule Oyuna Uranchimeg’s Journey to the Paralympics
Feb 28, 2022•36 min
We recap a fun Olympic curling tournament. First, we discuss the narratives surrounding the performances of Canada, Sweden and Great Britain. What’s next for Curling Canada? Do we have a new greatest curler of all time? Is Team GB’s process justified? Then we list our favorite things from these Olympics, including the BBC’s dislike of … Continue reading Narratives and favorite things from the Olympics →
Feb 22, 2022•57 min
Like the United States, interest in curling soars in Japan during the Olympics. This interest has reached even greater levels following Japan’s bronze medal performance at the 2018 games. Naoki Iwanaga, a former competitive curler from Japan now living in the US, joins us to talk all things Japanese curling. We discuss the differences in … Continue reading How the Olympics expands Japan’s curling “pond” →...
Feb 15, 2022•47 min
And down the stretch they come! Every team at the Olympics has three games left on their schedule at the time of this recording. First, we try to untangle the women’s standings. Then, we breakdown the game that will probably decide the men’s playoff field. Olympic and Paralympic Curling Schedule Our Welcome to Curling series … Continue reading Breaking down the Olympic playoff races →
Feb 14, 2022•30 min
As everyone predicted (and by everyone, we mean no one), Italy will face Norway for the mixed doubles curling gold. In this episode we review the mixed doubles competition going into the gold- and bronze-medal games, especially the fantastic stories of Italy and Australia. We also discuss what trends could emerge in mixed doubles as … Continue reading Mixed doubles in Beijing was wild and wonderful →...
Feb 08, 2022•24 min
