Kent Steffes
Personal information
NationalityAmerican
BornJune 23, 1968 (1968-06-23) (age 55)
Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.
Height6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
College / UniversityStanford University, UCLA
Medal record
Men's beach volleyball
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1996 Atlanta Beach
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1993 Rio de Janeiro Beach
Bronze medal – third place 1997 Los Angeles Beach

Kent Steffes (born June 23, 1968, in Ann Arbor, Michigan) is an American former professional beach volleyball player.[1]

Steffes received his AAA beach rating while still attending Palisades High School.[1] He was named the 1986 National High School Player of the Year.[2] He enrolled at Stanford University and played for one season before transferring to UCLA, where he graduated with a degree in economics.[3] While a Bruin he joined the AVP Tour full-time in 1988.[1]

Steffes earned the AVP No. 1 ranking at age 22, the youngest player to do so in the history of the sport.[1] Steffes and his partner Karch Kiraly won the inaugural beach volleyball gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.[4] That same year, he was selected as the MVP of the AVP.[1]

In his career, Steffes teamed with numerous partners to win 110 events,[5] and has the highest winning percentage in the history of the sport (48.6%).[6] By the time Steffes retired in 1999, he had won over $2,500,000 in prizes.[1]

In 2004, Steffes was inducted into the California Beach Volleyball Hall of Fame.[1] In 2020, Steffes was inducted into the USA Volleyball Hall of Fame as an All-Time Great Male Beach Player.[7][5]

Personal life

Steffes became a member of the AVP Board of Directors, and also 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.[4]

Book

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 Summer Olympics, and offers an in-depth look at the dramatic quarterfinal match between Steffes and his partner Karch Kiraly against Sinjin Smith and Carl Henkel.[8][9]

Awards and honors

  • "Most dominant player of the 1990s"[5]
  • USA Volleyball Hall of Fame Inductee (2020) All-Time Great Beach Player[5]
  • CBVA Hall of Fame (2004)[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Kent Steffes". Beach Volleyball Database. Archived from the original on May 18, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  2. ↑ Lidz, Franz (June 22, 1992). "Banker of the Beach". Sports Illustrated. New York City. Archived from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  3. ↑ Garcia, Irene (August 26, 1994). "A Winning Prototype : Beach Volleyball Star Kent Steffes Dominates Along With Kiraly, and His Harder, Smarter Approach Is Catching On". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 24, 2023. (subscription required)
  4. 1 2 "Kent Steffes". Olympedia. Archived from the original on September 17, 2021. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Kent Steffes". USAVolleyball. Archived from the original on June 9, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  6. ↑ Smith, Kim; Strauss, Doug (May 17, 2022). "Phil Dalhausser's AVP Dominance Over the Years". Association of Volleyball Professionals. Archived from the original on December 4, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  7. ↑ Kaufmann, Bill (February 3, 2020). "Scott, McPeak Headline USAV Hall of Fame Class". North Country Region Volleyball. Archived from the original on July 24, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  8. 1 2 "Kings of Summer: Rise of Beach Volleyball". Amazon.com. Archived from the original on January 12, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Going for the Kill Karch Kiraly and Kent Steffes of the U.S. Beat Down One of Their Primary Obstacles to a Gold". Sports Illustrated. New York City. July 27, 1996. Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
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