With a Winter Olympic Games to host in 2022, China is looking to develop the level and popularity of winter sports in the country, and with this in mind, Beijing is currently playing host to the 2017 World Women’s Curling Championship.

While grace, poise and precision may be the order of the day, constant roars and cheers from players and spectators alike are also de rigeur in curling.

"Communication is critical,” says Chinese skip Wang Bingyu. “For me, I don't know how much force they have put behind the stone, while they can't see the target as clearly as I can. So the loud shouting serves as a bridge between the lead and the sweepers."

A 15-foot bull's eye target is what both teams are aiming for. With the stones closer to the center bringing in the points, team members have to wrestle the dual roles of ensuring their stones are closest to the bull, while simultaneously looking to hit opposing stones out of points-scoring contention.

In one of the tournament’s closest matches so far, Switzerland edged China 8-7 on Sunday, by scoring two points in the final end. Despite curling having a history dating back several hundred years, the Chinese team was only formed in 2003, and their comparative lack of tournament experience may count against them.

"For us, we need to learn from these matches,” Wang noted. “Though we put pressure on our opponents, they still managed to do well. This is an important experience.”

While China has some way to go to reach the level of perennial favorites Canada, Switzerland and Sweden, the World Curling Federation clearly feels the 2022 Winter Games are in safe hands. 

"China is lucky to have such a fantastic team, with skip Wang having already won the World Championship in 2009,” says the federation’s media manager Joanne Kelly. “The  standard of curling in China is constantly improving, and the fact that Beijing is to host the 2022 Winter Olympics is a very positive development. I think you can look forward to a very exciting Games."