VAR has left football fans divided, but other sports are calling for it to be introduced.
GB’s women curlers were penalised for a controversial foul that ended up costing them the game and fans are now calling for the system to be introduced in the sport to prevent such mistakes being made.
The stone had crossed the hogline when a red flashing light appeared on the top of the stone.
Usually this would only happen if the curler hadn’t let go of the stone before the line, or where they double-touch it.
BBC’s Olympic commentary team thought it may have been a rogue finger than touched the handle after it crossed the line, but were not convinced.
The violation meant the stone had to be removed from play which left the game wide open for Sweden to win, and extend their run to five wins
Defending bronze medallist, Eve Muirhead, was playing her final stone when the red light began flashing.
The sensor should only flash if the handle hasn’t been released before the hogline.
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Many were suggesting that the rock was faulty, as replays on the televised coverage show that it was released beforehand, but replays aren’t used in the sport.
The stone was checked to see if it was faulty but officials found there was nothing wrong with it.
Fans are calling for VAR to be used in conjunction with the sensors, as controversially Muirhead’s final attempt was discounted.
Skip Muirhead, spoke to Reuters following the violation and said she was ‘gutted’ to lose in such a way.
The European champion said: “I guess when you see the replays and it looked like it was let go before — it was hard to take.”
“It was the first stone I’ve probably ever hogged in my life. There’s nothing we can do. We have to move on.”
Understandably frustrated by the incident, she said: “When something like that happens, it makes it very tough to take and it’s gutting it finished that way.”
VAR has been embraced in rugby and Hawkeye in tennis has been used since 2002, but other sports are appear resistant to using the technology.
Football has been slow to introduce the use of it and there have been many controversial moments since it has been used in this year’s FA Cup.
But had it been used in curling, particularly in Pyeongchang, it could be a different story for the defending bronze medallist.
Like every major sporting event, the Winter Olympics have been awash with controversy.
From doping in curling, by a Russian athlete, to fights in the Ice-Hockey between Russia and the US.
But this is the first to involve a GB athlete- who sit in 16th place in the medal table.
GB’s male curling team today defeated Italy in a difficult game, that swung both ways.
It came down to the final stone at the extra ends in a game that was just shy of three hours- it was hailed a great win for Team GB.
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