A tale of two U.S. curling teams
PINEROLO, Italy — Wholesome in appearance and decorated on the ice, they were the stars leading up to the Winter Games.
Fresh off a silver-medal finish at the world championships, the U.S. women's curling team took a pre-Olympic media tour, gave a demonstration in Central Park and attracted a few marriage proposals from adoring fans along the way.
But it's the American men curlers — not the women — who still have a legitimate shot at an Olympic medal.
With better ice conditions that allowed them to take more chances, Pete Fenson's men's team beat Switzerland 7-3 Friday night to move into a second-place tie in the nine-game round-robin. The women have started with a 1-5 record that all but ensures their elimination.
"Watching the girls go in the afternoon, we noticed (the ice) was swinging a little bit more," U.S. team member Joe Polo said. "You can get more aggressive. It's nice to get aggressive because you don't have so many close games."
The Americans took charge in the seventh end, or inning, stealing a point even though Switzerland had the big last-rock advantage known as the hammer.
Fenson, the skip and final shooter, used his first shot to clear a Swiss stone away from the scoring target and leave a U.S. one in position to score. That gave the Americans a 4-1 lead; Switzerland got two in the next end, but the U.S. answered with two in the ninth when the Swiss couldn't knock a U.S. stone off the white eight-foot circle.
Although the women's team failed to make good on the promise they showed in the world championships, they hope the spotlight they put on their quirky sport will help it grow beyond the fleeting moment of "extreme shuffleboard" fame it obtained in Salt Lake City.
"I think it's already getting a lot of publicity. People (who) said before they made jokes about curling now have some respect for it," team member Cassie Johnson said. "To get into the spirit of the Olympics, to see it
