Karch Kiraly is an American volleyball player, coach, and broadcast commentator who was a key member of the United States National Team that won gold medals in the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games in the 1980s.
He went on to win gold in the 1996 Olympic Games, the first time beach volleyball was featured in an Olympic sport. He became the first and only man (or woman) to win gold medals in both indoor and beach volleyball at the Olympics. He is presently the head coach of the US women’s national volleyball team, where he is attempting to guide them to their first-ever gold medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He received the Hungarian nickname Karcsi (pronounced Karch-ee) as a child, which corresponded to the Hungarian name Karoly, which means Charles. Later at UCLA, he was known as Karch. The United States Women’s Volleyball Team wins gold.
Karch Kiraly’s Bio
Karch Kiraly was born on November 3, 1960, in Budapest, Hungary. His hometown is Santa Barbara, California, and his birthplace is Jackson, Michigan, USA. Charles Frederick Kiraly is his given name. He is an American national with an ethnicity of American-White. His ethnicity is White. His horoscope sign is Scorpio, and he practices Christianity. His father, Laszlo Kiraly, and mother, Antoinette Kiraly, gave birth to him. His father was a member of the Hungarian junior volleyball squad. Kati Kiraly and Kristi Kiraly are his two siblings. In the year 2020, he became 60 years old. Kiraly started playing volleyball when he was six years old, and at the age of eleven, he competed in his first beach volleyball event alongside his father.
Kiraly received his schooling at Santa Barbara High School, where he was a member of the varsity boys’ volleyball team. Kiraly was asked to join the Junior National Team during his high school years, where he competed for three years. In 1978, he attended in UCLA, where he studied in biochemistry and was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha Epsilon Sigma Chapter. During his final year of college, he added another championship to his resume. During his four years as coach, the Bruins went 123–5 in games, winning crowns in 1979, 1981, and 1982. In the 1979 and 1982 seasons, they went unbeaten. All four years, he was an All-American, and in 1981 and 1982, he was named the NCAA Volleyball Tournament Most Outstanding Player. He graduated with a 3.55 overall GPA from UCLA with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry in June 1983. In addition, in 1992, he was inducted into the UCLA Hall of Fame, and his jersey was retired in 1993.
Karch Kiraly’s Career
Karch Kiraly became a member of the national squad in 1981. He was also the inspiration for Doug Beal’s 1983 “two-man” serve receiving technique. He led the United States National Team to gold in the 1984 Summer Olympics, overcoming a setback to Brazil in pool play to beat Brazil in the finals. He was also the gold medal team’s youngest player. The United States National Team established themselves as the greatest team in the world by winning the 1985 FIVB World Cup and the 1986 FIVB World Championship. The team earned their second Olympic gold medal in 1988, beating the Soviet Union in the final match. He was even named captain of the squad that competed in Seoul in 1988.
In 1986 and 1988, the FIVB named him the best player in the world. Following the 1988 Olympics, he left the national team. From 1990 to 1992, he and his colleague Steve Timmons played professional volleyball with Il Messaggero Ravenna in Italy. The squad won the Italian Volleyball League (1991), the Italian Cup (1991), the FIVB Volleyball Men’s Club World Championship (1991), the CEV Champions League (1992), and the European Supercup (1992) in two seasons (1992). He is presently the head coach of the US women’s national volleyball team, where he is attempting to guide them to their first-ever gold medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Karch Kiraly is the ‘winningest’ player in the sport’s history, having competed on the professional beach circuit for almost a decade and winning a total of 148 events. He won championships with 13 different partners, and he reached the quarterfinals in almost 80% of his home tournaments. Kiraly competed until he was in his mid-forties. He competed in his first beach event when he was 11 years old. At the age of 15, he obtained his A and AA ratings on the beach, and at the age of 17, he earned his AAA rating. In 1978, he had his huge beach breakthrough at Hermosa Beach. In the 1980s, he formed a successful beach team with UCLA classmate Sinjin Smith. In 1992, he left his indoor career behind and returned to the United States to play full-time beach volleyball on the AVP circuit. Kiraly competed in the 1996 Olympics again, this time in beach volleyball with his partner, Steffes. The gold medal was won by Kiraly and Steffes, the first ever for men’s beach volleyball. He won a total of 148 professional beach volleyball championships, 74 of which he shared with Steffes. He collected more than $3 million in prize money and a lot more in sponsorships over his beach career. After the 2007 season, he left the AVP circuit.
Karch Kiraly began coaching at St. Margaret’s Episcopal High School, where his sons, Kristian and Kory, were teammates. He was then appointed as an assistant coach by head coach Hugh McCutcheon, where he assisted in the team’s silver medal performance at the 2012 London Olympics. In 2012, he was chosen head coach of the United States National Women’s Volleyball Team in preparation for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He also guided the Women’s National Team to the FIVB World Championship, where they won gold after beating China in the final. Kiraly became the fourth individual in October 2014 to win a World Championship gold medal as both a player and a coach. He became the fourth athlete to earn medals as both a player and a coach at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, leading the US women to a bronze. He guided the US women to a gold medal in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, on August 8, 2021, becoming just the second player to earn a gold medal as both a player and a coach, the first being Lang Ping of China.
He is also a published author. “Karch Kiraly’s championship volleyball,” co-authored with Jon Hastings and published by Simon and Schuster in 1996, and “Beach Volleyball,” co-authored with Byron Shewman and published by Human Kinetics in 1999, are two of his publications.
Apart from that, Karch has served as an ESPN announcer and even offered color commentary for the AVP on NBC broadcasts.
He also served as an analyst for NBC Sports during their coverage of the 2008 Summer Olympics beach volleyball tournament.
Achievements and Awards
Who Is Karch Kiraly’s Wife?
Karch Kiraly is a husband and father. Janna, his lovely wife, was his bridesmaid. Kristian and Kory, the couple’s two boys, are the couple’s other children. Karch and Janna are both supportive and devoted to one another. Karch Kiraly, his wife, and his children presently reside in Heber City, Utah, USA.
Karch Kiraly’s Net Worth
Karch Kiraly is a volleyball player, coach, and commentator with an estimated net worth of $2 million in 2022. He has won over $3 million in prize money and has made a significant amount of money through sponsorships. His coaching business is his main source of income. The specifics of his compensation have yet to be revealed.
Karch Kiraly’s Body Measurement
Karch Kiraly is an attractive young guy. He stands at a height of 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 meters). His ideal bodyweight is 205 pounds (93 kilograms). His additional bodily measures, such as chest size, waist size, bicep size, and others, are still unknown. In general, he has a fit figure and a lovely attitude.
Quick Facts
In the 1980s, Karch Kiraly was a key member of the United States National Team, which won gold medals in the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games. He is presently the head coach of the US women’s national volleyball team, where he is attempting to guide them to their first-ever gold medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He became the first and only man (or woman) to win gold medals in both indoor and beach volleyball at the Olympics. Charles Frederick Kiraly is his given name. Kiraly started playing volleyball when he was six years old, and at the age of eleven, he competed in his first beach volleyball event alongside his father.