In a dramatic twist, one of the calmest sports witnessed a major controversy unfold on Friday. During the curling match between Canada and Sweden, Sweden’s Oskar Eriksson accused opponent vice-skip Marc Kennedy of illegally touching a released curling stone. Following Friday’s on-ice incident, World Curling has released a statement.

“The issue of second touches of the stone, specifically the granite, during the delivery was brought to the umpire’s attention. Officials spoke with both teams and set game umpires at the hogline to monitor deliveries for three ends, which is the official protocol following this type of complaint.

“There were no hogline violations or retouches of the stone during the observation period.”

According to Rule R.5: “If a moving stone is touched, or is caused to be touched, by the team to which it belongs, or by their equipment, the touched stone is removed from play immediately by that team. A double touch by the person delivering the stone, before the hog line at the delivering end, is not considered a violation.”

Further, Rule R.5 (d) explains: “The curling stone must be delivered using the handle of the stone.”

While the official statement effectively puts an end to the cheating accusations, here is the origin of the controversy and what steps have been taken to avoid it further:

The origin of the controversy: Swedish third Oskar Eriksson started the affair by approaching an on-ice official during the ninth end of play, suggesting:

“Apparently, it’s okay touching the rock after the hogline, I dunno.”

According to him, the Canadian Team’s third, Marc Kennedy, pushed the stone with his index finger while launching it. He also pointed at Canada’s Brett Gallant for his double-touching habit.
The Canadian team maintains that they didn’t touch the curling stone. Meanwhile, clips confirming the rule violation are making rounds on the internet.

The resolution: The World Curling does not currently use video replay to re-umpire game decisions. Decisions made during a game are final.
The organisation further noted that it is not possible for World Curling to have game umpires positioned to observe all hoglines for every stone delivery. However, beginning with the Saturday (February 14) afternoon session, two officials will move between all four sheets and observe deliveries.

In fact, World Curling has added electronic handles on the stones at the Winter Olympics. These handles flash red if players are still making contact with the stone beyond the hog line (the point where curlers must let go of the stone during delivery) to prevent such moments.

“Oskar was accusing us of cheating. I didn’t like it. I’ve been curling professionally for 25 years,” remarked Kennedy later.

While confronting Eriksson over his accusations, Kennedy struggled to control his emotions. As such, he went on an explicit-laced rant against the Swede. The conversation ended with this:

“I haven’t done it once,” said Kennedy, who then issued an expletive. “I haven’t done it once.”

“Okay,” replied Eriksson. “I’ll show you video after the game.”

Rule R.19 states: “Improper conduct, foul or offensive language, equipment abuse, or wilful damage on the part of any team member is prohibited. Any violation may result in suspension of the offending person(s) by the curling organisation having jurisdiction.”

However, World Curling found nothing against the rules as per the rulebook. And in the end, Canada’s win remains unchallenged. Here’s more on how they secured it in the first place.

Canada edged Sweden 8–6 despite cheating accusations at the Olympics

Currently, the scoreboard is led by Canada and Switzerland as both teams have maintained a winning streak. Canada, led by skip Brad Jacobs, first beat the United States 6–3. Following their win against the USA, they played against the defending champion, Sweden. 

At halftime against Sweden, Canada was ahead 3–2. However, Sweden took no time to be back in the lead by scoring 2 consecutive points. Then Canada made an impeccable comeback and scored 4 points in the eighth end.

After all the dispute and fiery clash on the ice, Canada finally secured an 8–6 win over Sweden, moving ahead with 3–0.

However, following the conclusion of the game, the Canadian vice skip reflected on the matter in a different light and calmly stated, “I have a ton of respect for Oskar Eriksson. He’s one of the best players to ever play.”

Sweden skip Niklas Edin, on the other hand, stated, “It’s super sad, of course.” Referring to the confrontation, he further added, “These are incredibly talented athletes, but it gets a bit overshadowed by this.”

Nonetheless, the game between Sweden and Canada left fans on the edge of their seats. Not just because of the neck-and-neck match, but because of the drama too.