Olympic curling alternates stay ready, in case COVID hits

By JIMMY GOLEN
AP Sports Writer

BEIJING (AP) — The alternate on a curling team doesn’t usually have many responsibilities. But when the U.S. men fell behind Canada early, American skip John Shuster took advantage of the opportunity to sub Colin Hufman into the game. Hufman is a first-timer at the Winter Games who can now call himself an Olympian. Canada also used its sub in the match. Both teams said they want to keep the alternate sharp in case one of the regular foursome tests positive for COVID-19 and needs to be replaced.