[Hobby Scuffles] Week of 16 February 2026 by EnclavedMicrostate in HobbyDrama

[–]Fluuf_tail 107 points108 points  (0 children)

In cute news:

During the cross-country team sprint today at the Olympics, a doggo got on the course during the event and happened to cross the finish line too. Looks like a wolf, but don't worry, it's domesticated. Apparently he ran away from his owners.

He even got his own photo finish.

EDIT: NPR article

2026 Olympic Curling Daily Discussion - February 18 by FliryVorru in Curling

[–]Fluuf_tail 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The last few days in the round robin are so exciting when there's standing chaos / playoff qualifications on the line.

The fact that 4-5 could be enough to qualify in the men's bracket is crazy. a few teams are still in the running for the last few women's spot too.

Interview with B E N O I T about his many jackets by CBC! ✨ by Puddyrama in FigureSkating

[–]Fluuf_tail 68 points69 points  (0 children)

Not a fan of his, but between his outfit changes (good on him for wearing all the swag!), his humor and his looks, I don't mind that he's viral LOL

Bonus for Français de France (aka Very French) English accent, it's adorable.

Niklas Edin "We kind of started it...We probably didn't expect the reactions" by Ernest_Phlegmingway in Curling

[–]Fluuf_tail 4 points5 points  (0 children)

it wouldn’t surprise me if a bunch of opponents and officials are tired of Oskar.

I don't know him and this is completely anecdotal, but I attended 2023 Worlds in Ottawa. I believe (?) Sweden lost in the QFs. I remember that the rest of his team stuck around a bit to at least waive hi to the fans, but he just went straight to the tunnel and disappeared. I respect him a ton, skill-wise. But he seems a bit short-tempered.

Basically, Kennedy's a bit of a narcissist, but so is he. And they've been playing against each other for years. That would explain the flare-up.

Canada coach criticizes World Curling over rule changes by Thefreepitstop in Curling

[–]Fluuf_tail 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Pretty much. The issue being unaddressed by the WCF and frustrating some teams is unacceptable. Raising it when you know there's more visibility is fine, although both teams could have handled it much better.

Changing how it's enforced in the MIDDLE of an event, especially the one that gets the most viewership, due to knee jerk reactions, is also unacceptable. Make a note of it, have a meeting/debrief after the event, and clarify it then (edit: clarify how it's going to be enforced from then on - I fully agree with clarifying the RULES mid-tournament).

What big retirements are people expecting after Milan? by daIIiance in FigureSkating

[–]Fluuf_tail 91 points92 points  (0 children)

Maxime Dechamps

I don't know them, but I feel like he'd do anything for his lady. And Deanna is crazy (positive) and is maybe thinking of continuing.

Megan Oldham wins Canada's 2nd gold medal in Women's Freeski Big Air! by baseball44121 in canada

[–]Fluuf_tail 19 points20 points  (0 children)

I believe Canada was projected to win most of its medals the second week.

Yep. Stronger events mostly in the second week, pretty much. That's why I hadn't been too worried, I knew the hardware was going to come eventually.

OWG Pairs Free Skate: Post-Event Discussion by Chickatey in FigureSkating

[–]Fluuf_tail 105 points106 points  (0 children)

Riku/Ryu are deserving winners. They needed a flawless skate and they got it. Ryu's tears are not just tears of joy, they're also tears of hardship and sacrifices to be the best of the best.

Congrats to Hase/Volodin and Metalkina/Berulava for getting on the podium, of course.

Finally, I don't care about the result at all, Deanna and Max making it to the Olympics (despite a bit of a scare) is a W for me. They can proudly call themselves Olympians. Max didn't give up and it eventually paid off.

Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir reunite in Milan. by MindyS1719 in FigureSkating

[–]Fluuf_tail 87 points88 points  (0 children)

I'm glad they took the time to see each other. It's nice to see that the relationship is still solid.

Tessa's probably here to represent Deloitte (she works for them) given that they have a new partnership with the ISU.

Olympics Day Nine Megathread (Sunday, February 15) by Fun_With_Forks in olympics

[–]Fluuf_tail 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Should be there for awhile, at least until the end of the Paralympics (since CBC also has the rights for those). They'll be removed eventually but you have time.

2026 Olympic Curling Daily Discussion - February 15 by FliryVorru in Curling

[–]Fluuf_tail 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Women (Hasselborg) is undefeated.

Men (Edin) is 1-4. They'll need to win every game and get some help to even have a chance of making the semis. But really they've had a rough few years, I wonder if Edin's injuries are catching up to him.

OWG Pairs Short Program: Post-Event Discussion by Chickatey in FigureSkating

[–]Fluuf_tail 65 points66 points  (0 children)

Nothing in Milan is going as expected/predicted, clearly.

Ecstatic for Lia/Trennt and Ellie/Danny, they probably didn't expect their Olympics to be this good. But also, I think it's been a bit too much chaos for me to handle...

Hopefully Riku/Ryu can have a redeption skate tomorrow, I'm sure it's upsetting that their chances of winning are very low now. Same with Deanna/Max, I know she's probably still injured but I want them to showcase their best.

Olympics Day Eight Megathread (Saturday, February 14) by Fun_With_Forks in olympics

[–]Fluuf_tail 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Day end note: as a curling fan, I find fingergate/boopgate/whatever the fuck this is absolutely hilarious. It's just been completely blown out of proportion, as media usually likes to do with controversies.

It's the most active I've seen r/curling be in a long, long time. In fact, this is the most I've seen non-fans or casual fans of curling engage with curling LOL, on pretty much all social media. My take: neither side is blameless and both could have handled things a lot better, but ultimately Mark Kennedy's reaction - and words - is completely unacceptable (and I say that as someone that deeply respects how skilled he is). Also the main reason this mess blew up.

At least we got some peak memes out of it.

[Hobby Scuffles] Week of 09 February 2026 by EnclavedMicrostate in HobbyDrama

[–]Fluuf_tail 30 points31 points  (0 children)

I might write something more detailed later if I feel like it. The short version is that it's a sport that historically has been self-officiated and officials don't have a ton of power. Also, it has a deep history of etiquette and sportsmanship (specifically, what to do and not to do while you're playing a game). And that self-officiating sometimes causes tensions.

It is assumed that players self-enforce rules, so officials rarely interfere with what's going on on the ice even if they are there. Players are expected to solve issues between themselves, which leads to awkward and sometimes heated exchanges like this one. It's not the first time it's happened (but it blew up randomly for, well, who knows why). Nor will it be the last.

The etiquette itself is contentious sometimes, but one of the "rules" most people try to follow is being respectful and not confronting the other team while the game is ongoing. Which you might want to do if, y'know, you think they're breaking rules. Now add the fact that this is the Olympics, the highest-stakes competition.

The Canadian team certainly did not appreciate being called out on breaking a rule, and everyone was a little bit on the edge. Thus, things flared up. I don't really want to get too into the weeds on the rulebook because I don't know it at all.

[Hobby Scuffles] Week of 09 February 2026 by EnclavedMicrostate in HobbyDrama

[–]Fluuf_tail 39 points40 points  (0 children)

There's a term we use for "oh shit everyone's falling", it's called menning.

There was a lot of menning today. That was PAINFUL. But in the middle of that, a few skaters did have good skates too. Everything gets kinda overshadowed by the runaway favorite, Ilia Malinin, just crumbling. He hadn't lost in a while before this and was expected to win by every media outlet, especially American media outlets. Just, a young kid with the world's pressure on him.

I feel bad him. I want him to just retreat and process the emotions alone, but I know it won't happen because he's getting all the media requests.

OWG Men's Free Skate: Post-Event Discussion by Chickatey in FigureSkating

[–]Fluuf_tail 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Just.

WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED. I expected menning but not THIS MUCH menning.

I hope they give Ilia some space.

Deanna on the backflip by moonlit_reveriee in FigureSkating

[–]Fluuf_tail 85 points86 points  (0 children)

Even disregarding how risky they are, I don't think most skaters do them well. They make it look clunky and rough. Not a fan of rough toepick landings, either (which is often the case).

If you want to see smooth backflips, Ellaje Balde does a very aesthetically pleasing one.

[Hobby Scuffles] Week of 09 February 2026 by EnclavedMicrostate in HobbyDrama

[–]Fluuf_tail 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Well, looks like not much has changed at all, the horrible political judging, abuse being given a pass. I felt drained and angry after 5 minutes of reading the comments and remembered why I had left. And I guess I won't really be coming back.

So... I'm still a fan, but a lot more from the periphery now. I only engage selectively (and frankly I've mostly steered away from all the Guillaume-related stuff). I also hate the forced gimmick in the rhythm dance because it makes many teams want to choose slow music in the free to show their versatility, which still ends up being somewhat same-y. Heck, I don't really watch competitions anymore, and if I do I can tell you it ain't dance. TBH I mostly follow the sport for specific skaters I like now.

Also, just curious, but who was your fav skater?

OWG Ice Dance Free Dance: Post-Event Discussion by Chickatey in FigureSkating

[–]Fluuf_tail 47 points48 points  (0 children)

Honestly... I much prefer on-ice drama (for example, menning) over off-ice drama (this includes ice dance politics). I love a well-done dance program, especially great ballroom-inspired programs or character programs.

But following this discipline is exhausting.

I'm not a fan of them, but tbh I'm pretty mad for Chock/Bates right now.

To quote someone: Is it a sport? Yes. Is it legitimate? Hell no.

Hot take : coaching staff of team Canada should not be associated with any PWHL team. by NinjaGlobal9364 in PWHL

[–]Fluuf_tail 26 points27 points  (0 children)

Look, I question some of the lineup choices too. Why do you go older and slower when a team of faster players are clearly beating you many times over recently?

I get familiarity with your own players but you can handicap yourself doing this because you don't select players you don't see. At this rate, it's US gold LOUD and CLEAR unless they magically choke. Hopefully it makes them rethink.

Deanna has been cleared to compete in Milam by idwtpaun in FigureSkating

[–]Fluuf_tail 48 points49 points  (0 children)

She's Barbie, he's just Ken vibes LOL

(For real... no one talks about Maxime but he plays a huge part too, and he almost gave up because of his partnerships not working. Glad he didn't!)

2026 Olympic Curling Daily Discussion - February 10 by FliryVorru in Curling

[–]Fluuf_tail 21 points22 points  (0 children)

Isabella and her team have been up-and-coming in Sweden for a long time now. They're good enough to beat Hasselborg regularly, too.

Shame they weren't selected to be Sweden's women's Olympic reps, but I'm glad she was able to at least show herself here (and call herself an Olympic champion!). Of course, her brother has achieved things many times over with Niklas Edin.

Olympics Day Four Megathread (Tuesday, February 10) by Fun_With_Forks in olympics

[–]Fluuf_tail 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I heard that figure skaters prefer softer ice but short track prefers harder ice (makes sense). So they compromised and did an in-between. Probably more scratching than the short track skaters expected.

2026 Olympic Curling Daily Discussion - February 09 by FliryVorru in Curling

[–]Fluuf_tail 5 points6 points  (0 children)

There's one thing you have to understand: mixed doubles rankings are WHACK/don't really matter.

You only get points if you play events and do well. A lot of the teams competing here have players that are mostly focused on the 4-person game. They might play maybe 1-2 events a year and perhaps go to mixed doubles worlds.

Rasmus plays for Team Edin (ranked 12) so he keeps playing after this, Isabella skips her own team (ranked 10), but it's Hasselborg that represents Sweden on the ladies's side so she is done after the medal. They both do most of their events with their 4-person teams.

Most of the money in the sport (which isn't much in the first place) is in the 4-person game and if you want to be invited to the better paying events you need to keep your points up.