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Canada's skip Kevin Martin follows a shot. (AAP)
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What is ... curling?
It's lawn bowls on ice, with the following exceptions. Instead of a jack, teams aim for a painted target. Instead of bowls, they use 19.1kg stones. Instead of using the bowl's natural bias, other team members control the stone's speed and direction by sweeping the ice with brushes. And instead of sensible slacks, spectators wear sensible furs.
Are Australians any good at it?
Unfortunately this is where the comparison with lawn bowls falls away. While the likes of Rob Parella have brought Australia glory on the greens, the green and gold have yet to qualify for an Olympic curling event. The top 10 teams from the world curling championships make it through to the Games, and this time round the Aussies were denied by the width of a brush's bristle – finishing half a point behind Sweden in 11th place.
Where it comes from
Blame the Scots. In 1541, knocking flat-bottomed river stones around frozen lochs was quite the new-fangled entertainment – this being the days before the mass-production of single-malt whiskey. Scottish immigrants brought the game to Canada in the 1800s, and from there it spread across America, possibly preceded by men wielding small brushes. After an aborted debut at the first Olympic Winter Games, the sport finally reappeared at Nagano in 1998 and has been a staple ever since.
Famous exponents
Current Canadian skip Kevin Martin will be taking part in his third Olympic Winter Games, despite being burdened with the nickname 'K-Mart'. While he will be hoping for his first gold medal on home ice, he has 10 grand slam titles on the world curling Tour. Hard-core curlers use the term 'to attempt a Martin' when trying for a near-impossible shot on the rink.
From the rule book
"If a stone is broken in play, a replacement stone is placed where the largest fragment came to rest."
Instant expert
"The ice looks like it's playing fairly fast in Vancouver, eh."
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