2013 World Men's Curling Championships

[degenerasian]

Here are the teams:
http://www.worldcurling.org/ford-world- ... nship-2013" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Here is the schedule:
http://www.tsn.ca/curling/feature/?id=10170" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Here is the tv schedule:
http://www.worldcurling.org/wmcc-2013-t ... e-schedule" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Live youtube stream:
http://www.youtube.com/WorldCurlingTV" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Scottie will be there all week!

[Rex]

hahahahahaha

[degenerasian]

I'm cheering for Finland.

Scottie, have you met these guys!?

[Scottie]

I haven't met the Finns. Yet. But I will at some point; it's a long week. I'm volunteering four days but that will probably turn into 6-8 days.

Jacobs looked awful today; couldn't read the ice. That should have been handshakes after 7 ends on a good day for China. It is "thick" (slow) ice; not nearly as good as the Brier ice in Edmonton. Mind you it was almost 70F (20C) degrees here today. And it will be warmer tomorrow.

[Scottie]

Not volunteering today. Too bad. Canada is (right now) playing Denmark's Rasmus Stjerne, who won the World Junior in YVR a couple of years ago (well, 2009, has it been that long already?). Anyway, here's a pic I took of Rasmus at the Olympic Curling venue; an event attended by me and The Wrench himself.

[Scottie]

And just to give you an idea how strong that 2009 World Junior tournament field was, Eve Muirhead (Scotland) won on the women's side that year, and this year won the World Women's. And the Canadian skip back in 2009 was Kaitlyn Lawes, who now plays for Jennifer Jones, arguably the best women's team in the world.

Also from that tournament, Brett Gallant skipped Canada; now plays for Brad Gushue, who took a serious run at winning the Brier (again) this year.

At the 2009 World junior, the Chinese skip was Zang Jialiang, who is now playing front end for China here in YYJ at the Worlds this year. I met him on Monday and told him that I saw him back at the Juniors. And he said, feigning embarrassment, in perfect English "Oh, no! You don't remember that!" He had a 3-6 record that year.

[degenerasian]

If Canada beats both Denmark and Sweden and Switzerland beats Czech Rep. I think we have 1000 tiebreakers tomorrow.

[Scottie]

Yeah, mid-table is sooooooooo tight. I picked Scotland to win it all and I'm still standing by that.

Six teams sitting with either 4 or 5 losses? Wow.

[degenerasian]

Yeah, mid-table is sooooooooo tight. I picked Scotland to win it all and I'm still standing by that.

Six teams sitting with either 4 or 5 losses? Wow.

Yup, China almost certain to beat Finland tonight so they'll be 6-5
Sweden and Denmark are 6-4 and both play Canada now and later, if they both lose, they're both 6-5.
Norway is 5-4 and plays USA and Russia. They should win both but if they slip up, they're 6-5. (USA is actualy up 7-2! right now)
Swiss at 4-5 and beating Japan (up 5-2 as well). Czechs 6-4, Swiss and Czechs they play each other tonight, the Swiss win and shit hits the fan.

There is a scenario where Scotland and Canada finish 9-2 and SIX teams finish 6-5. Have fun with that!

live youtube stream for Americans.

http://www.youtube.com/WorldCurlingTV" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Scottie]

Took the Americans too long this week to figure out the ice. I overheard Brad Jacobs (back on Sunday or Monday, I believe) saying "I don't know what happens here (meaning on that path of ice). I just can't get a grip on what this does."

Now, that's a guy that just won the Brier and he's having a hard time with weight and curl. Although the overwhelming consensus has been that the ice is great, top notch.

But the Americans are really taking it to Team Snazzypants right now. If Team USA had figured out the ice a day or two earlier, they'd be right in that tie-breaker mix. If not a 3 or 4 playoff team.

[Scottie]

Oh, and that Japanese team is the best 3-7 team you'll ever see. And they were just millimeters away from being 6-4.
Did you see Japan against Canada? They played brilliantly.

[degenerasian]

Oh, and that Japanese team is the best 3-7 team you'll ever see. And they were just millimeters away from being 6-4.
Did you see Japan against Canada? They played brilliantly.

But the skip cannot draw. Japan have given up a lot of steals.

[Scottie]

True. They are also struggling with the ice. Draws are a full-team effort.

Don't know if the TSN television crew are pointing it out but one thing I have been hearing all week is that the ice is far slicker down the slide paths (center line) in the houses. That's not unusual because the pebble wears out so much quicker there but the degree to which it is faster in the paths this week is causing players some difficulties (as you have surely seen). It's lightning quick. You might notice it when guys are yelling hard for sweeping around the hoglines but the when stones hit the top of the 12-foot they just keep going and going. And, oh man, that is so hard to judge.

I don't know to what it compares. The greens at The Masters maybe, being quicker than billiard table surfaces. Nah, even that doesn't do it justice. Stone sliding across ice, sliding, sliding, sliding, skips yelling at the rocks to just stop dammit.

Morozumi was at the Worlds in Moncton in 2009 when Kevin Martin blew it in the final against Scotland (David Murdoch) by giving up a steal in the 10th.

[Scottie]

Man . . . if Canada loses to Sweden tonight, I don't even want to think about how insane the tie-breakers might be.

See what I meant about the ice, though? That last draw attempt by Jacobs just kept sailing.

[degenerasian]

Man . . . if Canada loses to Sweden tonight, I don't even want to think about how insane the tie-breakers might be.

See what I meant about the ice, though? That last draw attempt by Jacobs just kept sailing.

Scotland David Murdoch 8 3
Canada Brad Jacobs 7 3
Denmark Rasmus Stjerne 7 4
Sweden Niklas Edin 6 4
Czech Republic Jiri Snitil 6 4
Norway Thomas Ulsrud 5 5
China Rui Liu 5 5
Switzerland Sven Michel 5 5
United States Brady Clark 5 6
Russia Andrey Drozdov 3 7
Japan Yusuke Morozumi 3 8
Finland Aku Kauste 2 8

10:00pm ET CHN vs FIN NOR vs RUS CAN vs SWE SUI vs CZE

It was crazy. Denmark won so they're locked in at 7-4, bad news for the 5-loss teams.
BUT Scotland inexplicably lost to FINLAND which still opens the door for Canada. If Canada wins tonight they are the #1 seed having beat Scotland in the round-robin.

If both the Czechs and Swedes win, they'll be a 4 way-tie for 2nd. Don't know how they solve that.
If both the Czechs and Swedes lose there will be at least a 3-way tie for 4th and Norway and China both win, there will be a 5 way-tie for 4th. Don't know how they solve that.

If one of the Czechs and Swedes wins, I don't believe there are any tiebreakers as it kills off all the 5-loss teams.

Should be a fun evening!

[degenerasian]

This is crazy the Swiss have beaten the Czechs so there are 4 teams at 6-5.

Canada 7-3 vs Sweden 6-4. Tied 7-7 in the 9th, Swedes with hammer.
The arena is dead quiet. Nervous.

If Canada wins, they finish first and 4 teams are saved (CZE, SUI, NOR, CHN). If Canada loses, they finish 4th and 4 teams die.

[degenerasian]

Sweden gets 2 in the 9th, Edin has made some amazing shots tonight.

Who have thunk it, Canada will probably lose twice today and fall from 1st to 4th while eliminating a bunch of teams in the process.

[degenerasian]

What'd you think of the circus shot at the end Scottie? They nearly made it.

No tiebreakers.

Page:

3-4 Denmark vs Canada.

1-2 Scotland vs Sweden

[Johnny Hotcakes]

Not volunteering today. Too bad. Canada is (right now) playing Denmark's Rasmus Stjerne, who won the World Junior in YVR a couple of years ago (well, 2009, has it been that long already?). Anyway, here's a pic I took of Rasmus at the Olympic Curling venue; an event attended by me and The Wrench himself.

Wow, I hadn't made the connection that it was the same kid (though I guess he's not a kid anymore). I remember being quite impressed with him at the time, good to see he's continued to excel. That was my first live experience with that caliber of curling - I recall the toughest thing was just deciding what sheet to watch and when. Definitely helped to have Scottie there to help with that and also explain some of the more involved strategy.

[BSF21]

Honest curling question...

Why split up men and women? Is there that much of a difference in something like this?

It seems like splitting up Darts or some shooting sports. I just don't see the need.

Thoughts?

[degenerasian]

huge difference in sweeping and power.

The precision of the mens game now is amazing. The Canada vs. Sweden game tonight had incredible shots that the women woudn't dream of making.

They let Jennifer Jones play in a skins game once and it was a total mismatch. Howard purposely tossed her a skin so she'd have some money to take home.

[Scottie]

Honest curling question...

Why split up men and women? Is there that much of a difference in something like this?

It seems like splitting up Darts or some shooting sports. I just don't see the need.

Thoughts?

I answered that question, at great length, starting at page 11 on blue swamp (you'll have to enter the page number you want, manually, in the small box top-left).

There is a staggering difference in strength between men's and women's. Curling is a highly physically demanding sport, in fact. Read my long answers in the old forum.