April Ross

April Ross was one of the few female beach volleyball stars who won medals at several Olympics. In Tokyo over the next several days, she'll be aiming to claim her third Olympic medal along with first-time Olympian Alix Klineman. Ross's dream is to earn her first Olympic Gold. This may be the last chance she'll ever have as she is 39 years old. But she's still confident of achieving top honours. Ross said on NBC Boston: "If we try our best, and even If we play our best, I think we could win the gold medal." So I'm going to take a little bit of luck too. Ross was born in California in Costa Mesa in 1982. Her family lived in the area with her father, mother and sibling. At Newport Harbor High School, she played in a variety of sports. Her pre-athletic career comprised indoor volleyball as well as basketball, running and track. She was definitely a cut above the rest in the latter sport. The college bio says that she was an outside-hitting hitter, middle blocker and setter during her volleyball career in high school. Her achievements were rewarded when she was named 1999 Gatorade's National Circle of Champions players of the year. Her skills in volleyball brought her the Orange County Athlete of the Year award in 2000. Although Ross and Klineman are in the spotlight since 2017, the former had already been a major player on the beach scene long before their pairing. In reality, she was a winner of several major championships while playing in the past with two different partners. one of which is an icon of volleyball. Between 2007 and 2013, she was partnered with Jennifer Kessy, who is now her coach. Kessy as well as Ross proved to be strong on the world circuit, winning a 2009 world title as a team. The pair eventually picked up a silver medal at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Misty Maytreanor (Jennings) and Misty Maytreanor took home gold overtaking them. Ross Jennings replaced May-Treanor as she left the team. They were able to win bronze in beach volleyball in the Rio Olympics in 2016. Ross began her collegiate career with the USC Trojans after graduation from high school. This was years before Ross hit the sand and turned pro. Ross's playing time with the Trojans was remarkable. In 2000, as a freshman she fought her way to Pac-10 and NCAA The Freshman of the Year accolades. She also was also an All-American. The Trojans also reached the Final Four. Her personal tragedy was a crushing loss during her sophomore year, but she still repeated in the ranks of an All-American. Over the course of the two years she played for the Trojans she was instrumental in helping them to win two consecutive titles. She was a great volleyball player and won the Honda Sports Award in 2003-04 as the best female volleyball player at the college level. Ross studied the field of international relations in USC. Margie Ross wasn't able to witness her daughter's rise to the beach volleyball spotlight. Ross's mother died of cancer of the breast when she was in her sophomore year at USC. In the aftermath, Ross remains close to her parent who died. Margie is an inspiration both on and off of the shore.