It may look easy on TV, but curling is a competitive sport that takes a lot of skill

Out of all of the events at the Olympic Games, Curling is one of the most watched events throughout the winter games.

I met up with Lake Tahoe Epic Curling Club President, Edie Hazard to learn more about this unique sport.

He explained, "The level and the skill in the game now compared to 98 has grown tremendously. When you see the athletes competing at the 2026 Olympics, the shots they're making, the degree of difficulty, of the shots they're making and the physical fitness, I mean, we were fit. We trained really hard. But I mean, these guys are I mean, they're primed athletes now, you know" 

The Rules of Curling.

Teams take turns throwing stones in a spinning motion down the Ice, aiming for the painted scoring zone, referred to as the "House".

The team with stones closest to the center of the house scores, if the opposing team has stones in the house, your team scores based off of how many more stones you have closer to the center than your opponents.

Teams alternate players throwing two stones at a time until all players have thrown all eight of their team's stones down the ice.

"A lot of its core strength and balance, you're trying to get your body in a line, keep the shot in a line, and so you're shifting the balance of your weight onto one foot and then sliding on a slippery surface so it once you get that dialed in, it's a bit like riding a bike."

Hazard competed in the 1998 and 2002 Olympic Games and has maintained a die-hard passion for the Sport that was palpable during our crash course lesson.

This experience was my first exposure to curling and I discovered first-hand that while it may look easy on TV, it's a very physically demanding sport that has used muscle groups I was unprepared for.

"It's very much a leveler even for people that are that are good. Other sports, I think everybody is, nobody's really tried before. And so, everybody comes in with the same ability, which is zero. So, it's starting from scratch. So that actually makes, I think, even more fun." 

To learn more visit Lake Tahoe Epic Curling.