Ice stock sport

Ice stock sport, also known as Bavarian curling, is a fun winter activity that is a bit like the game of curling. People play this sport mostly in southern Germany, Austria, and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. In this game, players slide special items called ice stocks across an icy surface. These ice stocks have a smooth bottom and a stick attached to them, about 30 centimeters long.

The goal of the game is either to hit a target or to slide the ice stock the farthest distance possible. Sometimes, people play this sport not on ice but on regular road surfaces during the summer, and then they just call it Stocksport.

Ice stock has been shown at the Winter Olympic Games twice, and it is also part of India’s Khelo India Winter Games program. The most recent world championship for this sport happened in February 2022 in Ritten, Italy, a place called Klobenstein (Collalbo). This was the 14th time such a championship had been held.

History

The first time people wrote about ice stock sport was in 1192, just before Christmas. Messengers came to tell Leopold V, Duke of Austria about capturing Richard the Lionheart while he was playing on the frozen Danube near Vienna. By the 1300s, it was likely played in Scandinavia too. The first paintings of the sport appeared in the 1500s in the Alpine region and the Low Countries, like one by Brueghel called The Hunters in the Snow from 1565. It wasn't until the 1930s that it became an official sport. Germany created a federation for it in 1934, and championships started two years later.

The first European Championships happened in 1951, and the first World Championships were in 1983, after the International Federation Icestock Sport (IFI) was created. Since 1983, both men and women have competed in the Icestock World Championships.

Disciplines

Ice stock sport has several different ways to play, and three of these are played in international competitions: target shooting, individual target, and distance shooting.

Team Game

In a team game, two groups of players try to slide their sticks as close as possible to a special mark called the "Daube." Each team has four players, and each player takes a turn. The goal is to have your team's stick closer to the Daube than the other team's stick. Teams take turns sliding their sticks, and after all turns, the team with the closest stick earns points. The team with the most points at the end wins.

Team Target Shooting

In target shooting, players have four rounds with six tries each. They try to get their sticks close to certain marks on the ice. Points are given based on how close they get. This can be done alone or as a team, where each team member takes a turn.

Distance Competition

In the distance competition, one player tries to slide their stick as far as possible. They get five tries, and the farthest one counts. The track changes a bit between summer and winter, but the goal is always to slide the stick the farthest distance.

Ice surface

In the winter, icestock sport is played on a sheet of ice. Players use either natural ice outdoors or a special indoor ice rink. The ice has lines and markings to help guide the game.

International Federation Icestocksport

The International Federation Icestocksport is the main organization that oversees the sport of ice stock. In 2021, during a meeting in Tokyo, the International Olympic Committee recognized this federation fully. This recognition shows that the sport has grown and developed well since the federation received provisional recognition in 2018.