CHINA AT THE OLYMPICS: Curling: China's 'Betty' eyes Olympic gold

Vancouver (AFP) - China's women's curling captain Wang Bingyu, or "Betty," is eyeing Olympic gold to add to an already impressive list of achievements by the reigning world champions. China, who only took up the sport about 15 years ago, won the 2009 world women's championship in Gangneung, South Korea -- just four years after the first Chinese facility dedicated exclusively to curling opened. The victory came on top of their second-placed finish at the world championship in Canada the previous year, taking their cumulative record in those tournaments to an impressive 22-4. Wang, who answers to the name "Betty," was introduced to curling by her ice hockey-playing father in her hometown of Harbin, taking up the sport about nine years ago. Chinese women's national team coach Dan Rafael, from Canada, puts China's success down to a single-minded focus on technique. "When I first met them, in 2007, their practice schedule was three hours a day of throwing and throwing and throwing. It wasn't even game-situation shots. It was just sliding rocks, working on their releases." "What they asked me about most was strategy. They were convinced I had a magical curling book." The Chinese, also including Zhou Yan, Yue Qingshuang and Liu Yin, play their first game in Vancouver against Great Britain on Wednesday.

View Article...