Curling and Fitness

In the second post below post John asks whether teams would be open to the involvement of sports scientists.

I have often wondered when the competition would get stiff enough that teams even worried particularly about basic fitness.

It seems that moment has arrived. Watching the Battle of the Sexes (see post below), I am puzzled who is being interviewed about the upcoming match beside Jennifer Jones, and I discover it is Randy Ferbey! Part of the surprise is the loss of the mustache, but his face is thinner too, and it turns out that his whole team has been working out extensively all summer. Even Nedohin looks somewhat younger. And also, the Jones team has been doing the same. Jones looks the same (but that was always amazing.)

According to the broadcast team, it is not just the competition forcing this adaptation, but also the stakes, as it is the Olympic trials that are creating the pressure.

As a point in passing, the first end of this 'silly' match was a wonderful display of shooting from both sides. The fundamental advantage of the men, much higher speed with similar control, made all the difference.