Curling 101: Competition Format | NBC Olympics

All disciplines feature 10 teams in the field. In the preliminary round, each team plays every other team. After each team has completed their games, the teams with the four-best records advance to the semifinals. If the top-four teams are not clear, tie-breaking procedures are used to determine the playoff teams.

Once the semifinals begin, if a team has a better record than its opponent, it has the option to shoot first or second during the first end. If the teams have the same record, the winner of their round-robin game has the choice of shooting first or second in the first end. In the semifinals, the top-ranked team from the round-robin will play the fourth-place team, and the second-place team will play the third-place team (No. 1 vs. No. 4, No. 2 vs. No. 3).

The winners of the semifinals meet in the final for the gold medal. The losers play for the bronze medal.

Each game in men's and women's curling is 10 ends in length. Mixed doubles is eight ends. Each end is complete when the two teams each have delivered all stones alternately and determined the score. If the teams are tied after 10 ends (men's and women's) or eight ends (mixed doubles), a complete extra end must be played to break the tie. If the teams are still tied, play must continue for as many ends as may be required to break the tie.

During the round-robin, men's and women's teams may concede the game once a minimum of six ends have been completed. During the playoffs, a minimum of eight ends must be completed. Conceding the game when the losing skip feels he is too far down to come back is fairly common and is an accepted part of the etiquette of the sport. It should happen multiple times during the Olympics.

Each team in the men's and women's tournaments will receive 38 minutes of thinking time for 10 ends. There are one-minute breaks between ends 1-5 and 6-10. Between the fifth and sixth end, there is a five-minute break. Each team can call one 60-second timeout per game to consult with its coach. Mixed doubles teams receive 22 minutes of thinking. There is a five-minute break after the completion of the fourth end.

If matches in the men's and women's tournaments require an extra end or ends, each team receives four minutes and 30 seconds of thinking time for each extra end. There is a one-minute break between the 10th and 11th end and any subsequent ends. Each team can call one 60-second timeout during each extra end. For an extra end in the mixed doubles tournament, three minutes of thinking time is allotted.