April Ross

April Ross was one of just a handful of women beach volleyball athletes who earned medals at several Olympics. In Tokyo in the coming days she will attempt to net her third medal alongside the first-time Olympian Alix Klineman. Ross wants to achieve more than her initial Olympic medal. As she turns 39, it could be Ross' last chance to win an Olympic gold. Still confident nevertheless. If we do our top or perform well, I think we'll be able to win that gold medal Ross stated on NBC Boston. Also, I'll take the opportunity to try my chances. Ross was born in California in the city of Costa Mesa in 1982. Her family lived in the area along with her parents and sister. The athletic pursuits she pursued began at Newport Harbor High School where she played in a variety of activities. As a prep-athlete she played indoor volleyball and track. She was definitely the best player in indoor volleyball. The college bio says that she played outside of the hitter middle blocker and setter in her volleyball playing career at high school. In recognition of her accomplishments, she received the Gatorade Award for National Player in 1999. In 2000, she was awarded the Orange County Athlete of the Year for volleyball. Ross and Klineman are performing their roles since 2017. But, Ross was a major player on the beach volleyball circuit before joining the duo. Actually Ross has won a number of major tournaments in her career together with two other partners. One of them is a volleyball legend. From 2007 to 2013 she teamed alongside Jennifer Kessy who more recently was Klineman's coach. Ross, the teammate of Kessy's, who took home the title of world champion alongside Kessy in 2009, also was a major force on world stage. This duo went through to take home a silver medal at the 2012 Olympic Games at London. They were knocked out of the gold by the legendary team comprising Misty and Kerri Walsh (Jennings). The fate of the matter was that Ross turned out to be Walsh Jennings' new partner when May-Treanor retired. They took home the bronze medal in beach volleyball at Rio Olympics 2016. Ross began her collegiate career with the USC Trojans after her high school days. The Trojans were a few years away from when Ross went to the sand and turned professional. The time she spent at USC was awe-inspiring. As a freshman in 2000 she earned Pac-10 and NCAA Freshman of the Year awards and was also an All-American. She was also one of the key players for helping the Trojans reach their way to the Final Four. In her sophomore year, she suffered a tremendous personal loss but still managed to be a second All-American. The last two years with the Trojans team, she led them to victory by winning the national title in consecutive years. She had established her place as a legend by winning the 2003-04 Honda Sports Award as the highest ranked female volleyball player. Ross was a student of international relations at USC. Margie Ross, Ross' mother, never had the privilege of watching her daughter grow into a beach volleyball superstar. Ross's mother died of breast carcinoma in the year 2001. Ross had just become an undergraduate student in the second year at USC. Ross is still awed by her late parent. Margie has always been a source of inspiration to her in and out of the water.