Curling’s Rapid Rise Across the USA

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, ITALY – The number of recent high-profile curling events hosted in the United States is at an all-time high.

There was a USA vs CAN club challenge series played in Colorado, and aired on CBS Sports.

The last-ever Pan Continental Championships were hosted on the “Iron Range” in Minnesota (watch from the 3:30 mark here).

Last week marked the debut of the first-ever Grand Slam series event in Lake Tahoe, NV.

April will see the state of Utah host the world men’s championship – in the same venue that will host Olympic curling at Salt Lake City 2034.

The biggest of them all – arguably – is underway right now in Sioux Falls, SD; the U.S. Olympic Curling Team Trials, featuring four men’s and women’s teams battling for the chance to get the U.S. into the 2026 Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

Young men’s skip Wesley Wendling and head coach Ann Swisshelm proudly represented USA Curling at the recent World Juniors here in Cortina. With the Milan Cortina Olympic Games now less than three months out, both are in agreement that the sport has never been in a better place across the country.

Curling’s popularity in the U.S. has risen exponentially, ignited by Team Shuster’s improbable gold medal performance at the PyeongChang 2018 Olympics. New fans were captivated thanks to five-time Olympian John Shuster and his colorful cast of characters – Tyler George (now retired) and front-ender Matt Hamilton among them.

“It was a super big deal – it drew a lot of attention to much more media and especially people that weren’t necessarily curlers, hearing about our sport for maybe the first time,” Wendling told The Curling News in Cortina. “It was really exciting for the curling community to have such an accomplishment for the U.S.”

Team Shuster’s 10-7 victory over Sweden’s Niklas Edin in the final marked the first time that an American men's team achieved Olympic gold. Shuster’s dominant five-point eighth end hammered home the historic triumph.

Wendling, a native of Wausau, WI – who competed against Shuster at the 2024 U.S. nationals in New Jersey, losing 9-1 – noted the domino effect of the U.S. team’s triumph, led by the veteran skip from Duluth, MN.

“Our sport is now out there – I think there are more clubs, new clubs opening, and more interest as far as learn to curl opportunities,” Wendling said. “Adults, juniors, they’re coming out and they're like ‘Oh, I saw this on the Olympics, I wanna give it a try.’”

Perhaps akin to bowling rolling to become a mainstream social phenomenon across the U.S. in the 1950s and 1960s, enthusiastic new participants are giving curling a whirl.

The number of registered U.S. curlers continues to increase, with nearly 100,000 people trying the sport annually and 20,000-plus members in total. Currently, there are 90 curling-specific club facilities and nearly 200 member clubs in the country. A National Curling Center is planned to be established.

Swisshelm is a two-time Olympian (2002, 2014), 2003 world champion and five-time U.S. national champion. She coached the U.S. men’s Chaska CC squad in Cortina. The former USOC Female Curler of the Year shares what she believes has triggered the U.S. spike in popularity.

“Ever since Team Shuster’s victory in PyeongChang, curling has been on TV in the U.S., and it translates across as a great team sport,” Swisshelm told The Curling News in Italy. “The Americans have responded. They may not understand the intricacies of what is going on, but they understand the fundamental principles.

“Also, crazy things happen with athletes wearing microphones. The viewer is brought into the game of curling as few other sports can bring to the TV audience.

“It is a great sport for community involvement. It’s a high communication and social sport. It’s a great environment for kids or anyone looking for a sport engagement, so I think the potential in the U.S. is limitless.

“You are seeing this with the development of rinks in non-traditional locations like Tennessee and Arizona. New places across the U.S. are grabbing at the sport, so it’s just an awesome time,” she said.

As Wendling aspires towards an Olympic Games, with the French Alps of 2030 in mind, he believes curling will continue to increase its national footprint outside of traditional U.S. markets like Wisconsin and Minnesota.

“I think just keep doing what we're doing now, growing it where we can… they’re building new clubs where there is funding and locations. There's interest in many new places. Most of my team is from back east in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, so they have clubs.

“It’s just a matter of time,” he adds.

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