Sports fans love comebacks, and we may be seeing one in Smithfield.

The Ocean State Curling Club, established in 2009, continues its work in bringing the Olympic sport back to prominence in Rhode Island and has been steadily growing its membership over the past 16 years.

There are 72 members in the club, but numbers are expected to rise as the Winter Olympics are set to return next February.  

“People often get really curious about curling when they see it on TV. It’s like, ‘What is this strange sport with brooms on ice? I want to try!” said Ocean State Curling board member Jayden Thai. 

The club holds regular “Learn to Curl” clinics and also participates in league curling events – also known as Bonspiels - throughout southern New England. The “Learn to Curl” events have been successful in introducing new players to the sport and teaching the fundamentals including techniques like throwing stones, sweeping and skipping.

“They learn about the history of curling, the different positions, how scoring works, the customs and etiquettes, and the different terminologies, jargons of the sport. They also learn how to slide out of the hack, deliver stones, sweep, and even play a couple of ends for a quick game,” said Thai. “By the end of the two hours with us, they’ll learn everything they would need to know to join a club and begin curling in a league.”

The club recently hosted the GNCC Arena Championship at Providence College, bringing in curling talent from across the country. The club will also be hosting two, eight-week winter leagues followed by several spring leagues.

Thai and company are always excited to welcome newcomers to the sport, which provides many benefits both on and off the ice.

“The benefits of curling are multifold. Curling is a great full-body workout and can really get the heart rate going, which people tend to underestimate how rigorous curling can be if they’ve never done it before. It can be a very humbling experience when you try curling for the first time and you get winded from it. The professionals on TV just make it look easy,” said Thai. “Personally, I love curling for the exercise, the sense of community, and the inclusiveness of the spirit of curling. The curling communities here in Rhode Island, both at Ocean State Curling Club and Pawkatuck River Curling Club (based in Westerly), are so special to me. Ever since I joined Ocean State Curling Club in 2019, I have witnessed and experienced the inclusiveness, warmth, support, and camaraderie of the club, and have formed great connections with our members. I couldn’t have asked for a better club to have joined.”

Fellow board member Brianne Straus echoed those sentiments and enjoys the culture that is being created at Ocean State Curling.

“Not only is curling a super fun sport to learn and play, it is also sneaky good exercise. On average you typically walk 2.5-3 miles in a curling match and test your shoulder strength while sweeping. Curling is also a very social sport where prior to each match all team members high-five, or fist bump while wishing each other ‘good curling’ prior to throwing the first stone,” said Straus. “Our club is really more than just a club, the friendships that have been made by learning and playing together weekly and traveling together to Bonspiels will last a lifetime!”

The Ocean State Curling Club can be found at oceanstatecurling.com as well Facebook and Instagram.