CNN explains why the sport of curling has gained significant new attention during these Winter Olympic games. Read it here. Now here’s the biggest reason:

NBC/Universal overpaid for the rights to this year’s games and has put them on all of its various networks, including USA, MSNBC, and CNBC, for as much time as possible. With so much time to fill, curling has been given more screen time than ever.

Interestingly, this factor is not identified in the CNN article, though vaguely alluded to.

As to the claim that the attractiveness of the contestants is a factor: well, of course. That’ s human nature.