Great Britain's curling team is set to compete at the Winter Olympics 2026 in Milano-Cortina, with high hopes after winning gold and silver in the women's and men's tournaments at Beijing 2022. The mixed doubles pair of Bruce Mouat and Jen Dodds will be among the first British athletes in action.
Curling has long captivated British fans, partly due to its unique features, such as the lights on top of the stones. These lights are part of a tracking system that ensures athletes release the stone before the first hog line—the red line at both ends of the ice. A heat sensor embedded in the ice detects if a player's hand is still on the handle when crossing the line, and batteries in the stone power the sensors. If a player fails to release before the line, the lights turn red, and the stone must be removed from play. While rare at elite levels, the pressure of the Olympics can sometimes cause this error.
According to USA Curling rules, each stone must weigh between 38 and 44 pounds (17.24–19.96 kg), including the handle, with a circumference no greater than 36 inches (91.4 cm) and a height no more than 4.5 inches (11.43 cm). The stones are made from a special granite found on the island of Ailsa Craig in Scotland.
The 'hammer'—the last stone in each end—is a significant advantage, as it allows the team to score based on the final positions of all stones. The team that does not score in an end gets the hammer in the next, which sometimes leads teams to avoid scoring just one point to retain the hammer. Before a game, the hammer is decided by a 'draw to the button', where two players from each team deliver stones as close as possible to the centre of the house.
In men's and women's events, the skip—the team captain—throws the final two stones of each end. In mixed doubles, the same player throws the first and last stones, while their teammate throws the middle three. Each end begins with one stone pre-placed per team, making it possible to score six points in an end.
