Marc Kennedy says ‘spirit of curling is dead’ as BBC commentator demands Winter Olympics action
Canadian curler Marc Kennedy has sparked controversy at the Winter Olympics after being accused of double tapping stones, with BBC commentator Steve Cram also demanding action over his team’s swearing
Marc Kennedy has spoken about the spirit of the sport(Image: NurPhoto, NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Marc Kennedy has claimed that “the spirit of curling is dead,” amidst accusations of rule-breaking at the Winter Olympics. The Canadian curler has been accused of double tapping his stones multiple times at Milano Cortina, with Sweden’s Oskar Eriksson igniting a heated exchange during Canada’s match against Sweden on Friday.
Eriksson alleged that the 44-year-old had crossed the hog line by touching his stone after release, to which Kennedy vehemently denied. He replied: “I haven’t done it once. You can f*** off,” in an attempt to defend himself. Unfazed by the fiery response, Eriksson added: “I’ll show you a video after the game. I’ll show you a video where it’s two metres over the hog line.”
Despite the controversy, Canada emerged victorious from the match with an 8-6 win. However, the allegations against Kennedy didn’t end there.
On Saturday, Switzerland’s Pablo Lachat-Couchepin was seen speaking to team coach Glenn Howard, claiming he’d witnessed a double tap from Canada during the fifth-end break. Following Switzerland’s 9-5 victory, he said: “Well, everyone talked about it yesterday about the double, potential double touching, and I think, I assume I saw one when the referee was right next to me.
“We received an email, saying, ‘OK, we’re going to monitor it,’ and it’s nothing personally against Canada, because for me personally, it does nothing; they can do whatever they want, it doesn’t change the direction of the stone. But when you have a referee on the ice and the referee is here, and he is looking at it, then he should see it.
“This is what I was a bit annoyed about. I said to the chief umpire, if they send an email they [Canada] just have to follow the rules and follow what is said. It’s nothing personal against Marc Kennedy, he’s a fantastic player, a very fair-play guy and I really admire him.
“I was a fan when I was a kid, it’s nothing against him. It’s just when you receive an email when you have to comply to the rules, then you have to follow it and this is why.”
World Curling has not found Kennedy guilty of any misconduct relating to double tapping stones on the ice. However, the governing body did issue him with a warning over his language during the heated exchange with Eriksson.
Kennedy has now spoken out about how the desire to expose rivals and the hunger for silverware have destroyed the essence of the sport. He said: “This whole trying to catch people in the act of an infraction sucks – the whole spirit of curling is dead. We don’t look for infractions at Grand Slams, we don’t look for that kind of stuff on tour, we just trust that the people around us aren’t trying to cheat.
“If somebody does something out of hand, it just gets dealt with in the moment, and you move on. You don’t need the officials to manage our game. That’s where the spirit of curling is in a little bit of trouble, and, honestly, that’s probably come from the quest for medals.”
Marc Kennedy launched an X-rated rant at Oskar Eriksson(Image: Getty)
The comments come after BBC commentator Steve Cram called for officials to address the Canadian curling team following their use of foul language during Tuesday’s match against Team GB. Canada were caught swearing amongst themselves on the broadcaster’s coverage, leaving Cram and Logan Gray frustrated.
Following one Canadian player being heard saying “every f***ing time* after they secured a point, Cram said: “Excuse me. They have to have a word with these Canadians,” with Gray responding: “Potty mouths.” Canada went on to claim a 9-5 victory over Team GB.
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