Curling history made in Kazakhstan
It’s June 1 and the 2021-22 curling season rolls on.
The 21st edition of the Kazakhstan Curling Cup just finished in Almaty, the final mixed doubles stop on the World Curling Tour. Twelve teams from six nations took part—Kazakhstan, India, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, South Korea and Uzbekistan.
The Kazakh pairing of Kristina Kolykhalova and Muzdybay Kudaibergenov won the championship with an undefeated 7-0 won/loss record, defeating India’s P. N. Raju and Kazakhstan’s Akgul Kumar 8-2 in the final.
Kumar and Raju went 5-2 during the week.
P. N. RajuThe podium finish marks the first time a curling athlete from India has won a medal at a World Curling Tour event, and also the first time an Indian athlete has won points towards the World Curling Federation’s Team Rankings.
Raju moved to the United States for work eight years ago.
“I watched curling on TV for the first time in 2006,” said Raju. “That was the first time the Winter Olympics were broadcast live on Indian television. I ended up watching a lot of curling during those Games.
“I watched Russ Howard win gold a few days after turning 50 and, as a result, I was inspired to try to compete for India. It wasn’t until a chance move to the Bay Area that I finally got to throw my first stone and rekindled my dream of representing India.”
Raju started playing in San Francisco in the fall of 2014. “I fell in love with the sport at the San Francisco Bay Area Curling Club and with mixed doubles at Lake Tahoe Epic Curling,” he said.
John Baker-Lake Tahoe Epic CurlingIn 2019, Raju was part of a men’s team that became the first Indian squad to compete in a World Curling Tour event.
Also in 2019, the Curling Federation of India became a conditional member of the World Curling Federation.
“We’re waiting for our provisional membership pending some paperwork from the Indian Olympic Association,” said Raju. “We are hoping this will happen at or before the WCF Congress in September. This would allow India to start sending teams to WCF events, like the World Mixed and the Pan-Continental championships this fall.”