April Ross

April Ross was one of the few female beach volleyball players who have won medals at multiple Olympics. Alix Klineman has become a brand new Olympian who will be joining her at Tokyo. Ross aims to earn her Olympic first gold medal however, she also hopes to win more. Perhaps she has one opportunity, given that she is 39 years old. Her optimism is that she'll be successful in achieving top honours. Ross said on NBC Boston that if they perform at their very best, and even play well, she believes the team will be able to win the gold medal. Therefore, I'm hoping to have some luck too. Ross was born on August 22, 1982, in Costa Mesa California. She lived there along with her entire family. Ross's athletic endeavors began at Newport Harbor High School where she played in a variety of different sports. She played basketball and ran the track as well as her indoor volleyball exploits as a prep athlete. She clearly was the top at the sport of indoor volleyball. According to her bio, she was an outside blocker as well as a middle volleyball player during her high-school career. She was awarded by the Gatorade National Circle of Champions player of the year in 1999 due to her accomplishments. Her volleyball skills also brought her an Orange County Athlete of the Years trophy in 2000. Ross and Klineman formed the partnership in 2017, but Ross had been a beach-scene player for years prior to. The American has been a major winner in tournaments twice with different partners. A couple of those is an iconic player in the world of volleyball. She teamed up together with Jennifer Kessy from 2007-2013, and was also Klineman's coach. Together with Kessy Ross was a force on the international circuit winning a world title in 2009. The pair eventually picked up a silver medal at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. The legendary Misty Maytreanor team along with Kerri Jennings won the gold. Ross Jennings took over for May-Treanor after she retired. Together, they won beach volleyball bronze for the Rio Olympics of 2016. Ross started her college career with the USC Trojans following high school. It was a long time before Ross hit the beach and became a professional. The time she spent at USC was impressive. In 2000, as a freshman she fought her way to Pac-10 and NCAA The Freshman of the Year honors and was an All-American. The Trojans were also able to make it to the Final Four with her help. She was devastated by a personal tragedy during her sophomore years, yet she managed to become an All-American again. In her last two seasons with the Trojans' program the team was led to victories by winning successive national titles. Individually she had cemented her place as a legend by winning the 2003-2004 Honda Sports Award as the highest ranked female volleyball player. Ross who was an USC international relations student was a volleyball star. Margie Ross did not get to witness Ross reach beach volleyball's highest levels. Ross's mother passed away from breast cancer while she was a sophomore in USC. But, she will always keep her mother's memory close and close. And Margie is an ongoing source of motivation for her at the beaches and throughout her daily life.