How do brooms affect stone's path in Olympic curling? What to know

Every Winter Olympics cycle, people turn on their television or whatever device suits their viewing needs and see athletes using a broom to help guide a 44-pound stone down a sheet of ice.

The brooms, mostly ones with synthetic bristles, are not used for cleaning; they are used for curling, which has been part of the Olympics since 1924, but most novices don't know much about the sport.

Basically, two teams of four people guide the stone down the ice to hit a target, or the “house”. The stones glide down the target, while players sweep the ice in front of it.

Each round has teams taking turns throwing eight rocks; the rocks that end up closest to the center of the target win that round, officially called ends.

How do brooms affect the stone's path in curling?

The purpose of the broom is simple.

Curling athletes use them to affect the stone’s curl. The sweeping reduces friction between the stone and the ice, helping the stone's direction, trajectory, and speed.

This action adds bumps to the ice, or pebbling. Once the athletes start sweeping, the distance a rock travels on a curling sheet increases. All of this is used as a strategy and a skill to get closer to the target, where mere millimeters can be the difference between winning and losing a match.

When does Olympic curling start?

The Olympic curling schedule began Wednesday, Feb. 4, at the Milano-Cortina Games, and will continue through Sunday, Feb. 22, in various formats.

The men's gold medal round will take place Feb. 21. The women's gold medal round is set for Feb. 22.

The mixed doubles medal round is Feb. 10.