THEY’RE the local firm with the international sporting pedigree.

And Kays of Scotland will continue their 90-year association with the Winter Olympics in Sochi.

The Mauchline firm have been producing curling stones for the event since the inaugural games in France in 1924.

And this year, the 66 stones used by the athletes will again have originated here in Ayrshire.

After being extracted from Ailsa Craig, the stones have been cored, polished, glued and packaged in Mauchline, before being transported to Russia.

Field Sales and Services Manager Mark Callan was en-route, at Moscow Airport, to the event in Sochi when he spoke to the Chronicle this week.

He said: “It’s a great honour for us to provide the stones for the event. We did the first games in Chamonix back in 1924 and when curling was brought back into the Olympics in Japan in 1998 we were again involved. We have been ever since and it’s always a thrill.

“The stones have already been out since last year and we used them in test events at the junior and wheelchair Olympics.

“The testing was done with 80 stones and we whittled that down to 66. There will be 64 being used by the competitors and two will be spares.” A family business, Kays have been making curling stones for almost two centuries, and years ago they negotiated the exclusive right of access to Ailsa granite with the island’s owner, the 8th Marquis of Ailsa, who, incidentally has put the island up for sale, with a current asking price of one and a half million pounds.

Each of these stones weighs 20 kilograms, is 278 millimetres wide and 136 millimetres high. To buy one would cost around £400, while a complete set of 16 matched stones - the number needed for a game between two teams - is priced at almost £6,400.

They have six craftsmen in the factory who produce five stones a day, meaning that it takes almost two hours from start to finish to make a stone As the granite is natural mineral, the most difficult aspect of the process is making sure all the stones weigh the same for the event.

Mark added: “That is the biggest thing for us but we are confident that the stones are as close to being identical as is possible.

“We are delighted with the results.” The Great Britain’s female team, skipped by Eve Muirhead, are favourites to land a gold medal, while the men’s team, with David Murdoch skipping,are also fancied to perform well.

Mark added: “The woman’s team have a great chance and are being tipped by many while the men will also do well. It should be a fantastic event and we’re confident the stones will be perfect for all the competitors.” But it’s not just the curling occupying Mark’s time, he and two others will be preparing the ice for all the events.

He added: “I’m in a team of three ice technicians and we’re making sure the ice is just perfect for all the events. It’s going to be really busy but something I’m really looking forward too. Being a part of a global event like this is a massive honour.”