Olympic Curling Fever Grips Minnesota With Local Club On The Rise

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- Once again, members of the United States Olympic curling team are capturing the hearts of America. Most members of the team have ties to Minnesota.

Get our free mobile app

Mike Sharp is the President of the North Star Curling Club in St. Cloud. He says curling has a long tradition in the state, especially in northern Minnesota.

Bemidji is probably known as the curling capital of the United States because of all of the champions that have come through there.

Minnesota and Wisconsin are considered the top two states for U.S. curlers over the last 30 years.

Minnesota and Wisconsin have a lot of clubs.  I believe there are 38 in Minnesota, the oldest being in Mapleton.  And, a lot of large clubs like Duluth, St. Paul, Blaine, and Chaska.

The North Star Curling Club is one of the newer ones. It started in January of 2023 and has quickly grown to 125 active members. They play their league matches on Sunday afternoons at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud in the practice arena. Their current winter league, which wraps up in March, has 20 teams.

The North Star Curling Club provides all the equipment you need.  You just need to buy your own non-slip shoes.

Sharp says typically club memberships skyrocket during Olympic years.

Sharp says the North Star Curling Club is working on building its own facility in the St. Cloud area.

A recent report indicated that curling is the #1 most-searched-for sport during the Olympics.  Sharp says it is the most televised sport during the Olympics, with matches on TV every day of the games.

Duluth’s Cory Thiesse has made Olympic history, becoming the first U.S. woman ever to medal in curling. Thiesse and teammate Korey Dropkin fell to Sweden in Tuesday's gold‑medal match, but still secured a landmark silver for Team USA.