(Dec 18, 2008) -- Switzerland's Ott teams with Scotland's Murdoch to crush Canadians
CAMROSE, Canada -- Team World flexed its Mixed Doubles muscles with another 15-3 win over Team North America - for a 30-6 lead in total scoring - at the 2008 Continental Cup of Curling.
Current European champions Mirjam Ott of Switzerland and Ewan MacDonald of Scotland combined to thump North America's Cathy Overton-Clapham and Kevin Koe (both of Canada) 12-6 to earn six total points. The World pairing took five points in the third end, added three in the fifth end, and a steal of two in the sixth to salt the game away.
Mixed Doubles features two competitors, one male and one female, throwing five stones per end in an eight-end game. One player throws first and last (fifth), while the other player throws stones two, three and four. The opponents alternate with their shots.
There are other variances to traditional curling. Sweeping is allowed but with just two players on the ice the thrower will sweep the delivered stone, or the other teammate will rush to sweep. In addition, each end starts with two stationary stones in play: one in a guard position on the centre line and the other placed in the rings at the back of the button.
The inaugural 2008 World Mixed Doubles championship saw Switzerland defeat Finland in the final. Sweden defeated Norway for bronze, with Canada finishing fifth.
"That's good fun, isn't it?" asked Ewan MacDonald, normally the third for David Murdoch, who captured gold at the Le Gruyère European Championship in Sweden last Saturday.
"Lots of stones in play, lots of huffing and puffing on the brushes. Lots of good curl on the ice, that's for sure."
MacDonald indicated interest in chasing a berth into a future World Mixed championship.
"If you've got the right girl, no problem," MacDonald smiled.
"Mirjam was the perfect girl today, that's for sure."
Team World also triumphed with a Swedish/Norwegian combination of Anette Norberg and Torger Nergard, who edged the American duo of Alison Pottinger and Craig Brown by a 7-5 score.
In the third match, another such duo - Sweden?s Cathrine Lindahl and Norway skip Thomas Ulsrud - came back from a 5-0 deficit to tie Canada's Jennifer Jones and Marc Kennedy 7-7.
It marked Jones' second tie of the day, making her responsible for North America's total of six points, against Team Worlds' 30 points.
In Thursday night men's team play, Canada's Kevin Martin takes on China's Fengchun Wang; Ulsrud battles Koe and Murdoch takes on Brown. |
