Shuster (c) has appeared on "The Tonight Show" and will throw out the first pitch at the Twins' home openerGetty Images
Curling's profile "always rises in Olympic years," but the U.S. men's team winning the Gold Medal at the Pyeongchang Games "created a spike in interest in the U.S. that has been felt even in the sunbelt," according to Donna Spencer of the CP. Team skip John Shuster is "doing his part to extend the impact of his victory," from appearing on NBC's "The Tonight Show" to throwing out the first pitch alongside his teammates at the Twins' home opener tomorrow. The men's World Curling Championship is taking place this week in Las Vegas, and while Shuster's team is not competing, they "participated in the opening ceremonies to promote the event." USA Curling is also "doing its best to parlay Shuster's moment into accelerated growth in the game." USA Curling CEO Rick Patzke said, "I say this lightly, but we’re just trying not to screw things up. We've been ready for 10 years in terms of 'this is going to happen some day and we need to do the best we can to harness it.' We're down to five states that we don't have established curling in yet." He noted he "accepted membership" for the first club in Mississippi during Team Shuster's run at the Games. NBC is "broadcasting or streaming 46 games of the men's world championship on its network and digital platforms." Patzke said, "I don't know that they've specifically increased (coverage) here, but what it's really done is advance the conversation around what more can we do" (CP, 4/2).
