April Ross

April Ross is only one of only a handful of beach volleyball players to have won medals multiple times at an Olympics. She will be competing in Tokyo to compete for her third Olympic gold medal along with Alix Klineman, who is a first-time Olympian. But more than that, Ross is aiming to capture the first Olympic gold. Perhaps this is her only chance at winning, as she's 39 old. However, she's confident that the top awards are in reach. Ross declared on NBC Boston: "If we do our best and even playing well I'm sure we'll win the gold medal." "I'm also going to try a little luck." Ross born August 22, 1982, in Costa Mesa California. She resided there along with her entire family. In addition to playing in numerous sports, Ross was also a student at Newport Harbor High School. When she was a student in the prep school, she competed in the indoor game of volleyball, as well as basketball as well as running track. She clearly was the top in the game of indoor volleyball. During her high school career she played middle blocker outside setter and hitter at the tennis court, according to her college bio. Gatorade Circle of Champions named her the national Player of 1999. The 2000 Orange County Athlete of the Month award was also won by her for volleyball. Ross is playing alongside Klineman since the year 2017, but Ross's beach game was established well before this. In fact, she won multiple major tournaments using two partners, one of whom is the volleyball legend. In the period 2007 until 2013, she was a team with Jennifer Kessy who more recently was Klineman's coach. Kessy as well as Ross proved to be strong on the international arena, taking home the world championship in 2009 as a team. The duo would go through to take home a silver medal in the 2012 Olympic Games at London. Misty Maytreanor (Jennings) and Misty Maytreanor won gold, beating them to it. Ross Jennings became Walsh Jennings partner in fate when Maytreanor retired. The duo won bronze in beach volleyball during the Rio Olympics in the year 2016. Ross was a student athlete at USC Trojans prior to beginning starting her professional career. She played during high school and in years prior to hitting the beach professionally. This was an impressive career for Ross in the university. When she was a freshman in 2000, her play earned her the Pac-10 and NCAA Freshman-of-the-Year honors. Also, she was one of the key players in helping the Trojans make their way to the Final Four. The Trojans suffered a heartbreaking personal loss during her sophomore year however she was able to return as an All-American. In her last two seasons as a player, she led the Trojans to the summit netting three consecutive championships at the national level. She was a great volleyball player, winning the Honda Sports Award in 2003-04 as the best female volleyball player in the NCAA. Ross was a major in International Relations at USC. Margie Ross did not get to watch her daughter's rise to beach volleyball fame. Ross lost the breast cancer that she battled in the year 2001. Ross was then a sophomore. Her mother is still close to her heart. Margie has been an inspiration both in her personal life and at the beach.