Sun, Mar 18, 2018 page11

• Curling fever continues to heat up Paralympics

  • AFP, PYEONGCHANG, South Korea
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  It is probably the slowest sport at the Winter Paralympics, but curling has proved an unlikely hit, with spectators flocking to watch wheelchair-bound athletes skillfully slide stones over a sheet of ice.

  The popularity of the niche sport has exploded in South Korea since last month’s Olympics, when their women’s side, nicknamed the “Garlic Girls,” had a fairytale run and won a silver medal.

  Curling’s newfound fame has spilled over to this month’s Paralympics, where 12 teams, consisting of both male and female athletes who have leg impairments, have competed.

  

  South Korea’s Lee Dong-ha pushes a stone during the wheelchair curling bronze medal game against Canada at the Gangneung Curling Center yesterday during the Pyeongchang Winter Paralympic Games in Gangneung, South Korea.

  Photo: AFP

  The rules are similar to able-bodied curling. Athletes slide stones over the ice and whoever gets them closest to the center of a target at the end of each round can pick up points.

  There is one key difference in the Paralympic version however: There is no sweeping.

  More than 54,000 tickets have been sold for the wheelchair curling, while curling-mad Mr T — who tweeted about his love of the sport during last month’s Olympics — has swung back into action, urging his followers to watch it at the Paralympics.

  Only para-ice hockey, a fast and furious sport that sees athletes competing in double-bladed sledges, has been more popular in Pyeongchang.

  “It’s a very entertaining game,” said Canadian wheelchair curler Ina Forrest, who lost the use of her legs aged 21 after a traffic accident. “I think there’s been a huge increase in the caliber of wheelchair curling.”

  The Gangneung Curling Center yesterday was packed out for a match between South Korea and Canada, with spectators waving banners and flags, and roaring with excitement whenever a stone slid close to the center of the target.

  Canada pipped South Korea 5-3 to win the bronze medal, with the Koreans ending the Games in fourth place.

  The South Koreans’ good performance has also helped to bolster crowd sizes, with more home fans coming to watch.

  “The team got good results, making people even more interested in the game,” team coach Beak Jong-chul said.

  The oldest athlete in Pyeongchang competed in wheelchair curling — Germany’s Harry Pavel, aged 67, while Canada’s team included a mother of four and grandmother of 10 — Marie Wright, 57.

  In the gold medal showdown later yesterday, China defeated Norway 6-5 in a nail-biting finish.

  Mr T, who made his name playing big-hearted toughman B.A. Baracus in 1980s TV hit The A-Team, tweeted about his love of curling throughout the Olympics — and seems even more enamored with the Paralympic version.

  “I said it before and I’ll say it again: curling is cool fool! But wheelchairs curling, more cooler!” he said on Twitter.
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