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At 44, Kiraly still among
best on beach
By TIM REYNOLDS, Associated
Press
Wednesday, April 13, 2005
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- He was the youngest guy on the Olympic
men's volleyball team in 1984, a fresh-faced and promising
youngster whose dominating play helped the United States win
its first gold medal. Now 44, Karch Kiraly is the oldest guy
on the beach -- and still enjoying unparalleled success.
This will be his last season on the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball
Tour. Then again, so was last year. And the year before that.
He's spent nearly a decade thinking his career was winding
down, only to capture a few more titles -- and prove he's
winning the fight against the sands of time.
"My wife was going through a couple old boxes a few
weeks ago and she came across an article that said it was
amazing I was doing so well at this age, still having success,"
Kiraly said. "It was written nine years ago."
Kiraly and his partner, Mike Lambert, won three tournaments
in 2004 and were the AVP team of the year. They were seeded
No. 1 for the season-opening event in Fort Lauderdale earlier
this month, yet were ousted early when Kiraly aggravated a
shoulder injury.
His 147 victories and $3.1 million in earnings are the most
in beach history. He's the lone American volleyballer to win
three Olympic golds; indoor from 1984 and 1988, on the sand
in 1996. Before Kiraly, the best U.S. Olympic finish was seventh
in 1968.
"He's a phenomenal player, but what's more impressive
is he's a phenomenal human being," said Mike Rangel,
Kiraly's coach, friend and trainer. "He's so humble.
I know a lot of pros in different sports, and believe me,
Karch is unique."
That's true in many ways.
Modesty keeps him from prominently displaying awards in his
home. He's financially secure, but totes the kids in a minivan.
He goes to bed at the same time and home schools his children;
instead of giving them a book on Washington, D.C., he scheduled
a four-day walking tour around the nation's capitol.
He's also volunteering his time as a spokesman for Youth
Without Borders, a group focused on aiding needy children
in Tijuana, Mexico, through scholarship programs and refurbishment
of child-care centers.
Along the way, he's found time to remain one of the game's
best.
"He's the greatest," said Lambert, the reigning
tour MVP who turns 31 Thursday. "We'll probably never
see another Karch. For me, it's like playing alongside Michael
Jordan. I'm still the 14-year-old kid with his poster on my
wall."
Kiraly was a four-time All-American, helping UCLA win NCAA
titles in 1979, 1981 and 1982. He then led the men's national
indoor team, before turning to the beach game.
He teamed with Kent Steffes to win gold in Atlanta at the
first Olympic beach tournament.
Steffes, eight years younger than Kiraly, retired in 1999.
Kiraly's still going.
"A lot of the other guys are taller, jump higher, stronger
and they hit the ball harder," Kiraly said. "I still
relish that challenge of being the oldest guy and still trying
to find a way to get it done."
With one bad swing in Fort Lauderdale, Kiraly thought he
was done -- for good.
In his third match of the tournament, Kiraly took an awkward
swipe at the ball and immediately felt pain tearing through
his right shoulder -- the one that's been surgically repaired
three times. He thought the worst.
"The three of us got together and we all cried,"
Rangel said. "First time I've seen Karch cry. We knew
the last game of the day was probably going to be the last
time not only Lambo and Karch played together, but the last
time Karch would ever play."
They lost that consolation match, said teary good-byes, and
Kiraly went home to California. Yet doctors found the problem
was just related to some scar tissue, remnants of surgery
past.
He's training and will be back for the tour's next event,
April 22-24 in Tempe, Ariz.
"I just hoped it was just a bad dream," Lambert
said. "And luckily, it turned out to be."
Still, it was a reminder that the end of Kiraly's career
is near -- even though he still manages to coax his body into
surviving Rangel's grueling twice-weekly, 45-minute plyometric
workouts. Lesser athletes can't last 10 minutes in a Rangel
session; Kiraly never misses one.
"It's the hardest workout he's ever done," Rangel
said. "The only guy in his kind of shape would be like
a Lance Armstrong. There's not a baseball player that could
do this workout, handle the condition Karch is in."
Soon, Lambert's focus will turn toward Beijing and the 2008
Olympics, meaning his playing relationship with Kiraly will
likely end. Kiraly will be at those Olympics, but behind a
microphone, working as a broadcaster.
Kiraly's place in history is secure. Yet somehow, he's still
not completely satisfied.
"Every extra season I get is icing on the cake,"
Kiraly said, "and I cherish the time I have left."
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