Disappointing: Two Blown Chances for Gold

The women curlers from Canada had two chances to win the gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics, but Bernard didn't make either shot, and Sweden repeated as gold medal winners.

What a sinking feeling. One can easily understand how silver medalists don't look so happy on the podium, especially when they know they could (and should?) have won the gold.

In the tenth end, Bernard had a hit for the win, but didn't quite curl enough and jammed the Swedish rock, allowing Norberg to tie the game. As an addendum, it looks as if the official scorers decided that Canada out-curled Sweden, but it sure didn't look that way to me.

The extra end got away from Canada, but Bernard had a pretty straight-forward double for the win. Again, her shot was just on the wrong side of the nose of the Swedish stone, leaving a steal of one for Sweden.

Well, neither Alan nor I thought Bernard's rink would win the gold. We both thought the Chinese rink would win gold, but they took the bronze.

slow, jerky, pixelated but better than nothing

My day job has me trapped in the office today, so I'm watching Canada vs. Switzerland in the women's curling semi-finals of the 2010 Olympics via this link:

http://www.ctvolympics.ca/curling/results-and-schedules/match=CUW400202/index.html

It is far from great, but it sure beats the alternative (nothing). One interesting observation: the section with the stats seems to be about 30 seconds or more ahead of the video! [update: actually more like a 2-5 minute lag between the two --- that is really bizarre!]

[btw, best regards to all who found their way to this site over the past few days...]

Curling Percentages Going into Monday's Draw

Two things stand out for me in the stats for the women's curling at the 2010 Olympics.

1. Despite all their close games and despite last night's loss in the extra end, Canada still has a slightly higher overall curling percentage than the other teams.
2. The teams are quite close overall in curling percentages. The rest of the competition should be close and exciting!
   

Teams	Round ->	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	AVG
1	Canada	77	80	78	81	86	74				79
2	Sweden	80	74	80	75	71	86				78
2	United States	70	79	76	82	82	74	83			78
4	Russia	83	79	62	78	72	86	79			77
5	Great Britain	74	70	68	80	72	80	77			75
5	Germany	79	73	76	75	70	75	79			75
7	China	75	71	71	77	79	71	76			74
7	Japan	75	74	68	82	66	79				74
7	Switzerland	81	75	73	71	71	70				74
10	Denmark	78	67	68	60	79	71	79			73

The spread is noticeably wider among the men's teams. And given their outfits, I just have to love the overall performance of the Norwegian men curlers!

Teams	Round ->	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	AVG
1	Canada	91	77	83	80	90	80	91			85
2	Norway	84	78	86	79	83	88	89			84
3	Sweden	86	82	78	82	79	85	88			83
4	Great Britain	73	84	80	81	86	72	87			80
4	Switzerland	84	74	79	79	81	87	78			80
6	China	82	75	84	75	79	77				79
7	Denmark	85	69	67	80	70	82	86			78
8	United States	78	74	75	76	77	82	76			77
9	Germany	79	75	73	80	71	72	77			76
10	France	79	77	73	79	64	77				75

Curling Percentages

Wow! After two ends in the Canada vs. China game, Darbyshire is curling 44%, Bernard is curling 56%, and the others are only in the 60s. Not surprisingly, Canada trails China 3-0 after two ends and will have to improve a lot to win this game (but isn't that what Canada has done so often in previous games!).

Update: Well, the Canadian shooting percentages certainly improved during the game. Unfortunately some serious misses by the front end in the 10th meant that Canada had to fight to get one in the 10th, leaving China with the hammer in the 11th and a win. Canada's first loss, but we cannot really expect the team to have been lucky enough to win all the close games.

Sponsorship for Olympic Curlers (and other athletes?)

As I have watched the curling from the 2010 Olympics, I have heard several of the commentators tell us that so-and-so from such-and-such country is a full-time curler. S/he is sponsored by their gubmnt and unlike Canadian curlers does not have to have another job to support themselves. There is always a whinging, wistful tone to such pronouncements, suggesting that in Canada we should also provide gubmnt financing for our top curlers.

I find this tone and its implications offensive for two important reasons:

• It ignores the considerable sponsorship and prize money for curling that is provided by the private sector in Canada. Top curlers earn an acceptable (though probably not luxurious) living when their winnings and sponsorships are added up. This private support for curling in Canada is monumentally greater than the private support for curlers in other countries.
• If the gubmnt were to provide support for Canadian curlers, who should receive that support? Only the top teams? If so, how might the gubmnt bureaucrats determine which are the best teams? And keep in mind that the fourth best team in Alberta could well be considerably better (and more likely to win on the international level) than the best teams from some of the other provinces. Gubmnts are notoriously bad at "picking winners" in other industries, and I see no reason for them to be any more successful at picking winners in sports.

In fact, one might well argue that one of the several reasons for Canadian success in curling (aside from years of practice and inculcation) is that curlers in Canada must compete for sponsorship and prize money. Those who aren't very good don't receive much money; those who are better tend to receive more money. There is a huge incentive to improve one's game.

I doubt if these arguments would apply to all Olympic sports, but they certainly are important when discussing sponsorship for curlers (and probably most other sports for which private sponsorship and prize money are sizable).

Mercy Rule at the Olympics?

Hooper asks in a comment to a previous posting,

... what is the minimum number of required ends before conceding? (This CAN-FRA blowout has a few people curious now.)

I have no idea, but the big lead Canada has over France made me wonder, too. Does anyone know? To be honest, I switched to Law & Order UK until Hooper's comment came through on my laptop....

How Long Can Clutch Curling Go On?

Again, the Canadian women's curling team at the 2010 Olympics pulled out another victory with their last shot. Wow! They shouldn't get themselves into these situations, but it sure is exciting!

I haven't checked, but I suspect their curling percentages are lower than their record might suggest; or put differently, it is likely their 3-0 record is better than one might expect, given their comparative curling percentages.

Norwegian Men's Curling Pants -- More

As I watch this morning's draw between Canada and Sweden, I notice every once in awhile from the adjoining sheet that the Norwegian men curlers are wearing argyle pants, but today's have a red base instead of the white base that appears in all the photos. Does anyone have a good photo of the red ones that we can use?

Canada vs. Sweden at the Olympics

If you aren't watching it now, go to a TV or find it on the internet. The first three ends of the men's round robin match between Canada and Sweden at the 2010 Olympics have already featured some absolutely amazing shots! This is so much fun!!

Lots of Credit Due to CTV/TSN

Well, after my whiney, whingey posting this morning (since deleted!) in which I complained about the lack of coverage of curling during the 2010 Olympics (a mistake due solely to my misreading the time zones), I now see that CTV is featuring the Canada-Norway game and TSN is featuring the Britain-Sweden game!

This is terrific coverage of curling at the Olympics!

My Picks to Win the Gold

Here are my picks for who will win the gold medals in curling at the 2010 Olympics:

• For the men, I pick the Kevin Martin rink, representing Canada. They have been very good for the past decade or two, and they looked awesome in the Olympic trials.
• For the women, I pick Wang and her rink from China. I make this choice with some disappointment and hope that I'm wrong. But Wang looked excellent and improving last year at the world championships; and no matter how good Cheryl Bernard looked at the Olympic trials, she and her rink didn't look like world-beaters there.

My picks are not much different from those of the odds makers:

It may not be as popular as hockey in Canada but curling is a sport that Canadians love and the men’s team is the favorite in Curling odds at 8/11 to win the gold medal at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics while the women’s team is almost even money. Britain is the second choice in men’s curling odds at 4-1 while Norway is 5-1. ...
On the women’s side, ... Canada is a slight favorite at 7/4 at online sportsbooks while China is 15/8. Sweden and Switzerland are 8-1; Denmark is 10-1 while Great Britain is 12-1. Longshots include Germany and the United States at 20-1.

Addendum: Let me add that while I really enjoy considering the odds provided at various gambling sites, I personally do not gamble at these sites (or anywhere, actually), and I do not recommend using them for anything other than information. Friendly side-bets are another story.

Olympic Curling Schedule

When I get home this evening, I am going to print this out and stick it on the fridge:

http://www.ctvolympics.ca/curling/results-and-schedules/index.html