What better way to kick off your Wednesday than with live curling from the Vancouver Olympics. If you're stuck at work and can't see the action, you're in the right place. FOXSports.com will keep you up to date with all the action.
Germany leads U.S. 1-0 after second end
End 3
Plenty of other great action going on around the Vancouver Olympic Centre. China is taking on Great Britain, Switzerland battles the Swedes, and Japan is taking on the hometown heroes from Canada.
Fun fact: We turn to our good friends at Wikipedia:
"Curling is a team sport with similarities to lawn bowling and shuffleboard played on a sheet of carefully prepared ice."
Note to self: When wintering in Boca, never take a shuffleboard bet from a Minnesotan. They're probably a ringer from the curling sheet.
The wikimeisters further illuminate the mysteries of the game: "Two teams of four players take turns sliding heavy, polished granite stones down the ice towards the house (a circular target marked on the ice)."
This shatters the long-held belief that "in da house" as in ". . . Snoop Dogg's IN DA HOUUUUUSE!" is a hip-hop/rap phrase. Obviously, it has its origins in curling.
End 2
Overheard in the newsroom: Far too many commercials are really disrupting the viewing experience. We'll see if the strategy picks up in this second end.
After the first batch of throws, we're once again trading stones in the house. It's a contrast to the more crowded style of play we saw from the U.S.-Germany men's match we saw yesterday. With an empty house, the U.S. intentionally sends the hammer long to keep the last-stone advantage for End 3. No points in End 2. Still 1-0 Germany.
End 1
The countries trade blows for the first few stones, taking turns knocking each other's stones out. The Germans have the hammer for this end, giving them a distinct advantage in this style of play.
The Germans err on the fifth stone, knocking the U.S. stone out of the house but watching their own slide out as well. They resume tradine stone for stone. It's an absolute war of attrition out there.
It all comes down to the hammer. Annnnd the Germans knock the U.S. stone out, earning the first point.
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