IN THE NEWS Sweeping Summit findings, recommendations released by WCF T
he World Curling Federation Sweeping Summit was held May 23-26 at the North Grenville Curling Club in Kemptville, On- tario, near Ottawa, Canada.
Tis event brought together an impressive group of world class athletes,
high performance experts, curling administrators and curling equipment manufacturers to conduct testing and research into the unusual and over- effective impact of sweeping reported during this past season. Te Athlete group included Olympic champions, world champions and
World Championship competitors. Testing was conducted under the supervision of the National Research
Council of Canada, using scientific methodologies and high-tech recording equipment. Te objectives of the Sweeping Summit were to: • Determine which existing combinations of materials, construc- tion and design allow sweepers to have a directional influence on a swept curling stone;
• Determine which combinations of materials, construction and de- sign, enforceable sweeping technique(s), or both “eliminate or sig- nificantly reduce the ability for a curling broom to have directional influence on a swept curling stone”; and,
• Recommend applicable standards for sweeping equipment and rules for sweeping to the WCF General Assembly.
Te Sweeping Summit objectives took into account feedback from al-
most 5,000 responses to the WCF Sweeping Survey about what influence brushing should be allowed to have on a swept curling stone. Te outcomes from the survey clearly identified that: • Te delivery should be the most important aspect of a successful curling shot;
• •
Sweeping should never be able to slow a stone down or make a stone “fall back” against the curl; and,
Sweeping should have only marginal ability to directionally impact a stone.
Initial findings Te Sweeping Summit tested almost 50 brush models supplied by six
equipment manufacturers, both in their original forms and with alterna- tive combinations of fabrics and constructions. Tese new concepts were provided by manufacturers with the aim of determining sweeping devices which produced little or no directional influence. Te public debate which occurred this past season included the sugges-
tion that the unusual impacts of sweeping being observed were caused by a particular sweeping technique and if sweepers were made to sweep at 90 de- grees, fully across the face of the stone, the undesirable effects would cease to be an issue. Although the full data set from the Sweeping Summit is still being cor-
related by the NRC, it was quickly determined that certain combinations of materials and constructions proved to be far too effective in the hands of top sweepers of either gender. Testing confirmed that regardless of the technique, even with sweeping
at 90 degrees, certain brushes had the ability to manipulate the stone in ways that ran counter to the views expressed in the Survey, including slow- ing it down.
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Sweeping Summit testing confirmed that regardless of the technique, even with sweeping at 90 degrees, certain brushes had the ability to manipulate the stone, including slowing it down.
Sweeping Summit recommendations Following the conclusion of the Sweeping Summit, the participating ath-
letes made the following unanimous recommendations to a joint meeting of the WCF Competition and Rules Commission and the WCF Athlete Com- mission: 1. Only WCF-approved sweeping equipment should be allowed for use at
WCF championships and events. 2. A single fabric from a single source should be used on all brushes ap-
proved for use at WCF Championships and events. Te preferred fabric identified at the Sweeping Summit is a woven product with no external wa- terproof coating or artificial texturing. 3. Te brush head construction should include a hard plastic base of min-
imum and maximum dimensions, foam of a specific density and thickness and no other internal components or features, such as foil, inserts or ridges. 4. Tree specific fabric type brush head constructions were extensively
tested and unanimously recommended. 5. Each player should have their own brush and swapping of brushes be-
tween players should not be permitted. 6. Only one brush head should be allowed for use on each broom in each
game, unless replacement is approved by competition officials in cases where environmental challenges produce less than ideal playing conditions. 7. Te only sweeping technique requiring enforcement should be the rule prohibiting depositing debris in the path of the stone, or “dumping.”
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