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Kent Steffes

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Kent Steffes
Personal information
BornJune 23, 1968 (1968-06-23) (age 56)
Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.
Beach volleyball information
Teammate
Numerous
Medal record
Men's beach volleyball
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1996 Atlanta Beach
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 1997 Los Angeles Beach
Gold medal – first place 1993 Rio de Janeiro Beach

Kent Steffes (born June 23, 1968 in Ann Arbor, Michigan) is a former professional beach volleyball player.

Steffes received his AAA beach rating while still attending Palisades High School. He was named the 1986 National High School Player of the Year and was the nation's most highly recruited high school senior. In 1987 with partner Forrest Smith he won the World Championships in San Diego. He enrolled at Stanford University and played for one season before transferring to UCLA where he graduated with a degree in Economics. While a Bruin he joined the AVP Tour full-time in 1988. Steffes earned the AVP No. 1 ranking at age 22, the youngest player to do so in the history of the sport.

Steffes and playing partner Karch Kiraly won the inaugural beach volleyball gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics. During the 1990s Steffes teamed with numerous partners to win over 110 events.

Steffes' career lasted from 1988 until 1999. As of October 2022, Steffes has the highest winning percentage in the history of the sport (48.6%)[1] and in 2020 was inducted into the USA Volleyball Hall of Fame as All-Time Great Male Beach Player Award[2][3]. Steffes is considered by many to be the Greatest Of All Time (GOAT) in the sport.[4][5][6][7]

Steffes graduated from UCLA in 1993 with a bachelor's degree in economics. That same year he was a member of the AVP Board of Directors, and served as Secretary. In 2000 he enrolled in the Graduate School of Business at Stanford, where he graduated in 2002. He has two children and lives in Los Angeles where he writes and works in the financial industry.

Steffes is the co-author of the book Kings of Summer: The Rise of Beach Volleyball.[8] Together with his co-author Travis Mewhirter, it chronicles the rise of beach volleyball from a 1970s rebel culture to inclusion in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. The book features an in depth look at the quarterfinal match which many consider the "Match of the Century."[9]

Awards and honors

  • AVP Best Up-and-Coming Player 1989
  • AVP Comeback Player of the Year 1996
  • AVP Most Valuable Player 1996
  • AVP Special Achievement 1996
  • Youngest number one player in the history of AVP (21)
  • Record most wins in a season (21)
  • Record most consecutive wins (13) (record shared with Kiraly, Jim Menges and Greg Lee)
  • Highest winning percentage in history of the sport (.482)
  • "Most dominant player of the 1990s"[10][11]
  • USA Volleyball Hall of Fame Inductee (2020)- All-Time Great Beach Player[12]
  • CBVA Hall of Fame (2004)[13]

References

  1. ^ "AVP Dominance".
  2. ^ "All-Time Great Male Beach Player Award".
  3. ^ "2020 USAV Hall of Fame Induction".
  4. ^ https://www.volleyball1on1.com/kent-steffes-the-greatest-beach-player-ever/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. ^ https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/kent-steffes-its-winning-time/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  6. ^ http://bvbhof.com/buildio/player_detail.asp?p=311#:~:text=So%20staggering%20were%20the%20numbers%20and%20the%20hype%2C,the%20sport%27s%20essential%20skills%20at%20an%20elite%20level. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. ^ https://volleyballmag.com/steffes-mewhirter-book-072622/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  8. ^ https://www.amazon.com/Kings-Summer-rise-beach-volleyball/dp/B0B3JHFKM7/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2Z7X70ESZ0STW&keywords=kent+steffes&qid=1663786585&sprefix=%2Caps%2C205&sr=8-1. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. ^ https://volleyballmag.com/steffes-mewhirter-book-072622/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  10. ^ https://usavolleyball.org/hall-of-fame/hall-of-fame-induction/kent-steffes/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  11. ^ https://volleyballmag.com/steffes-mewhirter-book-072622/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  12. ^ https://usavolleyball.org/hall-of-fame/hall-of-fame-induction/kent-steffes/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  13. ^ https://cbva.com/Home/HallofFame. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)


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