Rajiv Kumar "Raju" Rai (born February 3, 1983) is an American badminton player of Indian descent.[1] He won a bronze medal, along with his partner Mesinee Mangkalakiri, in the mixed doubles at the 2003 Pan American Games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.[2] Rai is also a member of Orange County Badminton Club in Anaheim, California, and is coached and trained by former Olympic doubles champion Tony Gunawan (2000), who is currently playing for the United States.[3]
| Raju Rai | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth name | Rajiv Kumar Rai | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | February 3, 1983 Lawrenceville, Georgia, United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 180 lb (82 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Right | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coach | Tony Gunawan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| BWF profile | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rai qualified for the men's singles at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, after he was ranked sixty-eighth in the world, and awarded an entry as one of the top 38 seeded players by the Badminton World Federation. He received a bye for the second preliminary round before losing out to Finland's Ville Lång, with a score of 9–21 and 16–21.[4][5]
Rai is a former coach of Bellevue Badminton Club, and also, an athlete director for the U.S. national badminton team.[2] He, along with fellow Olympian Bob Malaythong, currently coaches the top junior players in the United States at Synergy Badminton Academy in Menlo Park, California.
Achievements edit
Pan American Games edit
Mixed doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | UASD Pavilion, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic |
 Mesinee Mangkalakiri
|
 Philippe Bourret Denyse Julien
|
8–15, 7–15 |  Bronze
|
Pan Am Championships edit
Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Bridgetown, Barbados | Andrew Dabeka
|
2–15, 9–15 | Bronze
|
Men's doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Bridgetown, Barbados | Bob Malaythong
|
Mike Beres William Milroy
|
11–15, 15–8, 15–6 |  Gold
|
BWF Grand Prix edit
The BWF Grand Prix has two level such as Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold. It is a series of badminton tournaments, sanctioned by Badminton World Federation (BWF) since 2007.
Men's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | U.S Open | Halim Haryanto
|
Howard Bach Bob Malaythong
|
14–21, 19–21 |  Runner-up
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- BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament
- BWF Grand Prix tournament
BWF International Challenge/Series edit
Men's singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Nigeria International |  Alexandre Paixão
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13–21, 14–21 | Runner-up
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| 2008 | Giraldilla International |  Yuhan Tan
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19–21, 19–21 | Runner-up
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| 2007 | Hellas International |  Marc Zwiebler
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14–21, 16–21 | Runner-up
|
| 2007 | Carebaco International |  Brice Leverdez
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12–21, 17–21 | Runner-up
|
| 2004 | Carebaco International | Andrew Dabeka
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9–15, 7–15 | Runner-up
|
Men's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Southern Carolina International | Bob Malaythong
|
Howard Bach Tony Gunawan
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0–1 Retired | Runner-up
|
| 2004 | Carebaco International | Bob Malaythong
|
Alexandre Tremblay Tom Lucas Picher
|
15–5, 15–7 |  Winner
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| 2004 | New Zealand International | Bob Malaythong
|
 Shuichi Nakao Shuichi Sakamoto
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3–15, 15–10, 12–15 | Runner-up
|
Mixed doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Southern Carolina International | Mesinee Mangkalakiri
|
Philippe Bourret Denyse Julien
|
6–15, 9–15 | Runner-up
|
- BWF International Challenge tournament
- BWF International Series tournament
- BWF Future Series tournament
References edit
- ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Raju Rai". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2013.
- ^ a b "USA Badminton Announces New Board of Directors". Team USA. April 14, 2009. Archived from the original on September 14, 2012. Retrieved February 23, 2013.
- ^ Rao, Sam (August 5, 2008). "Another Indian-American books berth". The Indian Express. Retrieved February 23, 2013.
- ^ "Men's Singles Round of 32". NBC Olympics. Archived from the original on August 21, 2012. Retrieved February 23, 2013.
- ^ Miller, Jeff (August 11, 2008). "O.C. badminton drought continues with Rai loss". The Orange County Register. Retrieved February 23, 2013.
External links edit
- Raju Rai at Team USA (archived)
- Raju Rai at Olympics.com
- NBC 2008 Olympics profile
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