Curling question

Bruzynski,

Why don't men and women compete together? I believe there are mixed leagues, but why is there segregation at all? Tradition doesn't explain it, really.

P.S. You still owe me (us) a DVD copy of your championship match.

The larger question is why don't men and women compete together in several competitive sports...

In competitive levels the following sports do not have men and women competing together (this is off the top of my head)...
Hockey, baseball, volleyball, beach volleyball, soccer, tennis, table tennis, football, water polo, track and field, rugby, Australian rules football, lacrosse, ringette, golf, gymnastics, broom-ball, basketball, cricket, cycling, swimming, wrestling, boxing, fencing, martial arts, billiards, darts, handball, squash, badminton, diving, rowing, weightlifting, skiing, luge. skeleton, bobsled, speed skating, snowboarding, ski-jumping, marathon, triathlon, lumber-jacking, archery, and polo.

When men and women compete together in these sports it become a spectacle or a marketing thing. Curling would be no different. It seems that we see more men and women competing together in things that have an artistic element like figure skating or dance where the differing strengths of the genders can complement each other instead of being thought of as a handicap.

Wilhelm wrote:

The larger question is why don't men and women compete together in several competitive sports...

To answer your question: There just aren't many women with athletic abilities equal to those of the best male athletes.

In some sports, able women can compete at the top level (e.g., NHL, Indycar); others have the option of joining a woman's league.

But curling seems to be segregated by sex regardless of talent. I want to know why. Bruzynski?

the same for billiards and darts, strength speed and endurance are not criteria so they should be mixed.

Aren't the women's rocks lighter?

I don't know about heavier rocks I've certainly know a couple women with bigger stones.

Ba-dum-bump!

curling harder than it looks...being big helps throw 40lb rocks and sweep...women don't compete against men because once they get to a certain level they can't. At our club, skins league is open entry and no all female team is in the top 16.

If it a question of throwing acurate draws fast ice I suppose women could compete, but the game is a mix of shots and because there is an element of guess work involved in reading ice, being able to throw big weight for many takeouts is key. Big weight means less curl, but it also means more action on rocks hit. In most cases women cannot throw big weight as acurately as men (the closer to your limit generally the less acurate you are).

Sweeping is also a big factor. Sweeping is a combination of force and speed. Again size and strength are big factors.

Bruzynski wrote:

curling harder than it looks... […]

Thanks.

And only five months late.