Scots sensation is cover curl of charity calendar

But not any more. Curling has suddenly become sexy, thanks to Scotland’s “Ice Queen” Eve Muirhead.

The skip of both the Scottish and Great Britain women’s teams has cast aside both the staid traditions of the ancient “Roaring game” and most of her clothes to star in the 2012 Women of Curling calendar.

The 21-year-old Scot has been chosen to grace the front cover of the calendar, dressed in a tartan mini-skirt and brandishing bagpipes, golf clubs and a curling broom. And inside a topless Muirhead poses with her array of championship medals.

The calendar, a Canadian production, is aimed at promoting the image of curling’s top female stars. The proceeds will go to the Canadian Spinal Research Organisation’s “Shoot For A Cure” fundraising programme.

Muirhead, who was yesterday playing with her team at a world curling tour event in the Canadian city of Medicine Hat, is understood to be the first non-Canadian player to be chosen for the prestigious cover. She admitted: “I expect this calendar cover will cause a bit of a frenzy.”

The curler, from Blair Atholl in Perthshire, who is a five-time world junior champion, Olympian and world silver-medallist, explained: “I was asked to pose last year, but it was a rush job and the photos weren’t up to quality. I definitely wanted to take part this year, so we went to an old castle nearby, and got it done right.

“This year we had more time and I was really happy with how the photographs turned out.”

The pictures were taken by photographer Brad Askew at Blair Castle and at the Muirhead family home.

Muirhead said: “Brad knew I played golf and the pipes so it was his idea to combine them with the curling and a Scottish theme.”

A spokeswoman for the Royal Caledonian Curling Club, the national governing body for the sport, said: “It’s something that Eve is doing outwith her commitments to curling.

“She has obviously been approached by the organisation which is putting the calendar together as she is a high-profile athlete and because of the success she has said over the last few years.

“She is not only a big name here in Scotland, but in Canada she is very much the face of the future.”

The spokeswoman added: “For Eve and the other international curlers to be included among the Canadian girls is quite a privilege.”

Joining Muirhead in the calendar are fellow Europeans Cissi Ostlund of Sweden, Ekatarina Galkina of Russia and Regan Mizuno from the United States.

George Karrys, who helped put the calendar together, said: “Eve was initially approached as she is a ‘poster girl’ for a new generation of curling athletes.

“Her immense popularity within the UK is well known but she is also incredibly popular around the world, including in Canada.”

He added: “The photos these days aren’t as risqué as they once were.

“When the ‘Fire On Ice’ women’s curling calendar was first released prior to Turin 2006, the athlete models were all nude and world media interest exploded.”