Fargo Curler Wins Gold Honoring Late Brother's Memory

When Rachel Kawleski won the national curling championship on Sunday, the first thing she did was pull a creased photo from her pocket and show it to the crowd. It was a picture of her brother Steven, who died suddenly last June at age 35.

The 26-year-old from Fargo and her partner Connor Kauffman had just claimed gold at the 2026 Mixed Doubles National Curling Championship in Bemidji, Minnesota. They'll represent the United States at the World Championship in Geneva, Switzerland this April.

"I loved my brother to bits and pieces," Rachel said through tears after the win. "I'm very much feeling him here today."

Steven was the one who introduced Rachel to curling when she was just 8 years old. He needed a last-minute substitute for his team in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, and convinced his little sister to learn the sport in a single day.

"I don't think I threw anything in play. I was a child," she recalled. "But I loved it, obviously."

The path to gold was anything but smooth. Rachel and Kauffman had broken up in December after two and a half years together, finding their three-and-a-half-hour distance too difficult to maintain. They almost didn't compete at all as exes.

"We were cautiously optimistic, given the interpersonal issues, about our ability to play together," Rachel admitted.

They started strong at 5-0 but then crashed, losing two straight matches including a brutal 7-0 shutout. Communication between the former couple had completely broken down.

"We had a pretty serious conversation about how we needed to change team communication to be more positive," Rachel said. "It was make or break."

Something clicked. They won their next match, then stunned the undefeated top-seeded team in the semifinals after being down 4-1. A crucial crosshouse double shot in the fifth end turned the momentum, and they won 6-4.

In the gold medal match, they completed their comeback story.

Why This Inspires

Rachel carries her brother's photo at every competition now. When anxiety creeps in, she looks at it and finds strength. The curling rink has become her sanctuary where grief takes a backseat and she feels like herself again.

"It's the only place where I feel normal," she said. "Once I'm off the ice, I go back to grief, my life and just stress. But when I'm curling, that's all I'm thinking about."

She and Kauffman came to Bemidji hoping to medal. They left as national champions, proving that sometimes the hardest victories mean the most.

Somewhere, Steven Kawleski was smiling.