And with Russia's women recently being crowned European champions, the unique centre should get plenty of use in the future. Something that World Curling Federation (WCF) President Kate Caithness is hopeful for.

"Russia's woman are now the European champions and we are really delighted with this," she told insidethegames. "They have come on well. We really are very excited about the Games in Russia and it gives us a terrific opportunity to develop the sport in the country. We are capitalising on interest before and after the Olympics. We've got development plans in place for pre and post Sochi 2014 and are welcoming new members to help establish the sport in the nation."


Caithness, a former curler herself, is also delighted with Sochi's preparation for the Games and is quite taken by the coastal cluster in the Black Sea resort, which she says is "really very special".

"Our partners at Sochi 2014 have really worked hard to make the Olympic and Paralympic venues the best ever and they've been working around the clock to make sure the Ice Cube Curling Centre is a first class facility and hopefully they've achieved this," she explained.

"The coastal cluster is so special. When I was out in Sochi it was still a bit of a building site and there is a lot going on but the sport's venues are ready. [Russia's] President Vladimir Putin and [International Olympic Committee President] Jacques Rogge came to see the venue as well, which was very exciting. Everything is on schedule. I think the coastal cluster is going to be really very special."

Equally, the curling President is just as satisfied with the sport's own preparations ahead of the Winter Games. "We are just doing the final tests but we are ready and this is the big push," Caithness said. "We seem to be on track and if not we have from now until next year to fix it."


With the sport developing at such a rapid rate across the globe - curling is recognised as the fastest growing winter sport with over 50 countries participating now, the sporting action itself at the Sochi Olympics promises to be an exciting tournament as emerging nations from the Pacifica Asia region threaten to challenge the positions of some of the more established curling nations.

"Canada is always there, they are our biggest curling nation or association," Caithness told insidethegames. "There's Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and now the Russian women, but there is also the Pacific Asia region.

"I was out recently at the Pacific Championships in New Zealand and seven countries were competing. But you could have just about thrown a blanket over the field – the standard was fantastic. They are certainly going to be teams to challenge. So there is the potential for an extremely exciting Olympics. There is no doubt about that."

Meanwhile, the promising development of wheelchair curling makes for a spectacle of a tournament at the Paralympics, which get underway in one year's time from Thursday (March 7).

"Wheelchair curling is my baby, I like to keep a close eye on it and it is developing very very quickly," Caithness explained. "There are so many courses worldwide that disabled athletes can attend to get involved in the sport. This past year Turkey competed for the first time at the last qualifying event for the worlds and this year Finland so the sport is in really good shape."


As with their able-bodied counterparts, the recently crowned wheelchair world champions Canada and silver medallists Sweden are the teams to watch out for at the Sochi Paralympics as the top two ranked nations according to the WCF's tables.

So what does the future hold for curling beyond next year's showpiece in Sochi?

Well firstly, Caithness is keen to capitalise on the opportunities presented by the SportAccord Convention, which is also heading to Russia as it takes place in Saint Petersburg in May this year.

"Myself and secretary general Colin Grahamslaw will be at SportAccord as we have been in the last few years and it is something we really enjoy," she explained. "We will take an active role and we have meetings with our AIOWF (Association of International Olympic Winter Sports Federations) colleagues, and it gives us a chance to meet up with our partners like Sport Event Denmark and DB Schenker, different people that we have the chance to catch up with.

"We will also meet with organisations that involve the sport having events, such as FISU, the World University Games, as curling is a part of that. It's a great place to network that I enjoy very much. And I'm looking forward to it being in St Petersburg. I'm enjoying travelling back and forwards to Russia."

As for the sport's future in the Games, Caithness and her colleagues at the WCF are already thinking about the next Winter Games beyond Sochi, in Pyeongchang in 2018, where they are hoping to introduce a new discipline to the programme.

"One of the things we are trying to do is get a mixed doubles into Pyeongchang in 2018," she said. "As soon as Sochi 2014 is finished we will be applying to the IOC to see if we can have the discipline added as it can fit in with our programme, with no extra officials or no extra ice required. We can accommodate it with the resources we have."

Let's hope it doesn't get the cold shoulder.

Meanwhile, the grassroots opportunities for the sport continue to flourish, with dedicated facilities cropping up across the globe to lay the foundations for the next generation of promising Olympic and Paralympic stars, something that Caithness personally supports.


"My personal mission was to get dedicated facilities," she says. "Because if you have nowhere to curl the sport is not going anywhere. Dedicated facilities really are a priority. People think that if you have an ice hockey arena or a skating arena you can have curling but it is totally different ice.

"You need soft ice for skating and hard ice for curling so we have to have dedicated facilities and this last year Norway and the USA have built facilities, and New Zealand are currently building a facility.

"There's a lot happening. All in all our sport is developing pretty well."

So with Sochi on the horizon and promising future ahead the sport of curling really is going to rock our world.

Emily Goddard is a subeditor at insidethegames