Karch Kiraly

Karch Kiraly is the only person in history to win Olympic gold medals in both beach and indoor volleyball. Kiraly grew up on the beaches of sunny Santa Barbara, California and began playing volleyball at the age of six. While attending Santa Barbara High School he helped his team to a 1978 State Championship and earned Sectional Player of the Year honors. After high school he matriculated to UCLA and helped the Bruins to three NCAA National Championships while earning fourconsecutive All-American selections and being named the NCAA Volleyball Tournament Most Outstanding Player in 1981 and 1982. After earning his degree in biochemistry from UCLA he embarked on a successful professional career on AVP and FIVB. Over the course of his career he was named the AP Best Offensive Player of the Year three times and MVP six times, and was also named the FIVB Best Player in the World twice. On the Olympic level he helped the USA to team gold medals at the 1984 and 1988 Olympic games and won gold in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics in beach volleyball. Kiraly is a member of the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame and was inducted into the Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2001. He has since been named the head coach of the USA National Volleyball Team for their upcoming run to the 2016 Olympic games.