Why Kids Love Curling
10 May 2024
Children can take up curling at any age. It’s easy to adapt the sport for any age or physicality, meaning it has universal appeal. Curling is also easy to pick up and relatively simple: to win, slide your stone as close to the centre of a target as you can. It’s as easy as that!
Strategy alongside skill
Curling is sometimes called “chess on ice”. It requires a bit of thinking to win. In fact, there’s a lot more to it than simply throwing your stones down the sheet (the name for the space on which a game of curling is played) as fast as you can. Teams and players need to consider where their rocks will end up, speed and angles, where the next team might play, and how to strategically place the other rocks on the sheet. There’s a quick learning curve to grasping the tactics though. It doesn’t take long to pick up the basics, and children love to explore and learn this side of the game.
An enthusiastic yet supportive atmosphere
A game of curling is a place for shouting. Players in a curling team will bellow instructions at one another across the sheet. Curlers are passionate and it makes for a fun and dynamic atmosphere. Curlers are also some of the most respectful athletes out there. In fact, tradition dictates that you socialise with your opponent both before and after a match. So while curling gives a physical workout, it also provides something a little deeper: a chance to connect and be part of a friendly team. This makes the sport very enticing for children.
Open for all
Players can take up curling at any stage of life. It’s common to find curling teams made up of every generation. The style of the sport means that age doesn’t necessarily give an advantage, and neither does physical fitness. While there obviously is a certain level of fitness that players will need, you don’t need to be an elite athlete to play. This makes it very accessible, and the sport draws a colourful variety of players. Children love to meet and be around others, and the chance to play alongside not only other children but adults as well contributes to what makes the sport fun for them.
Curling at the Olympics and other competitions
Curling is always one of the winter sports that captivates viewers of all ages. It’s easy to follow along, and it's fun to watch the curlers throwing their stones while the sweepers brush furiously either side. Curling is regularly one of the most popular sports at the Olympics, with matches regularly commanding some of the biggest viewerships.
New Age Kurling
Many schools and children’s organisations are now integrating a form of curling into their PE sessions and after-school provision. This tends to be New Age Kurling, which is based on the traditional sport of curling but is played on a hard surface, such as a sports hall, using special weighted stones that are adapted for use on dry surfaces. Again, the inclusive, accessible nature of curling is one of the reasons that many schools and youth clubs incorporate it into what they do, and it means that a surprising number of children these days have given it a go.