Karch

Kiraly

Charles Frederick “Karch” Kiraly is the only athlete to win Olympic medals in both indoor and beach volleyball and is known as the winningest player in Volleyball history. Growing up in Santa Barbara, California, Kiraly started playing beach Volleyball with his father when he was 6. He won his first Manhattan Beach Open title at the age of 19 and won five more titles throughout his career. After playing simultaneously on his high school and the U.S. junior national team and winning MVP awards for both, Kiraly then attended the UCLA where he helped the team win three NCAA championships. As a member of the U.S. men’s indoor national team, Kiraly won Volleyball’s triple crown with gold medals at the Olympic Games Los Angeles 1984, the 1985 World Cup and the 1986 World Championship, as well as another gold medal at the Olympic Games Seoul 1988. Kiraly also played professionally overseas from 1990-92, winning the World Club Championship and MVP award with his Italian team Il Messaggero in 1991. He retired from competitive indoor Volleyball the following year, playing beach Volleyball full-time and dominating the sport. Kiraly has won more tournaments on the AVP Pro Beach Tour than any other player, with 148 wins. Kiraly also won his third Olympic gold medal at the first beach competition at the Atlanta 1996 Games. He was inducted into the Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2001.