Author: arwpadm

April Ross, Alix Klineman win gold at FIVB Dela Beach Open

Jan 02 News

The beach-volleyball world collectively sat up and took notice this week as Alix Klinemanand April Ross won gold at the FIVB four-star event in Dela Beach in the Netherlands. Sunday they took out fellow qualifiers and defending champions Maria Antonelli and Carolina Salgado 21-12, 21-15 to put the exclamation point on their first event together.

Klineman and Ross won 10 consecutive matches to win the four-star event, two in country quota, two in qualifying, two in pool play, and four in the playoffs. In their 10 matches they dropped only one set, and that was to fellow Americans Brittany Hochevar and Emily Day in the country-quota match (15-21, 21-18, 15-8).

Not only that, they beat three tough Brazilian teams (Maria Antonelli and Carolina Salgado Solberg, Fernanda Alves and Barbara Seixas, and Agatha Bednarczuk and Eduarda Lisboa), known for their southern-hemisphere early season prowess.

Klineman, Ross, and coach Jennifer Kessy discussed the win in an interview with Nils Koepke:

In the-bronze medal match, Yulia Abalakina and Ksenia Dabizha of Russia defeated Ieva Dumbauskaite and Monika Povilaityte of Lithuania 19-21, 21-16, 15-9. The bronze medal is the Russians’ best finish, surpassing their fourth place 2017 finish in Nantong, China.

Men’s Dela Beach medalists: Martins Plavins/Edgars Tocs (Latvia), Piotr Kantor/Bartosz Losiak (Poland), Alexander Brouwer/Robert Meeuwsen (Netherlands)/FIVB photo

In the men’s draw, Martins Plavins and Edgars Tocs of Latvia earned gold by defeating Piotr Kantor and Bartosz Losiak of Poland 21-14, 21-12. Bronze went to Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen of the Netherlands, who defeated countrymen Jasper Bouter and Christiaan Varenhorst 21-18, 21-14.

The tournament is an auspicious beginning for Plavins and Tocs in their first event together. The win is the first for Tocs, who played with Rihard Finsters from 2014-2017. The gold medal is Plavins’ third after a 2012 win in Stare Jablonski with Janis Smedins and 2014 in Anapa, Russia with Aleksandrs Solovejs. Plavins also won bronze in the 2012 London Olympics with Janis Smedins.

Full results for both men’s and women’s draws can be found at BVBinfo.com. The next FIVB event is a one-star dual gender event in Shepparton, Australia, February 1-4.
April Ross finds new partner for Tokyo 2020 Olympic run

Jan 02 Blog

April Ross, a silver and bronze medalist at the last two Olympics, will try for gold in 2020 with a new partner who has no international beach volleyball experience.

Ross said she and Alix Klineman, a recent beach convert from indoor, are partnering for this Olympic cycle, beginning with the first FIVB World Tour event of 2018 in January.

“It was [either] the safe choice or the choice I thought was challenging but had the most potential,” Ross said on a podcast published Wednesday. “It came down to really intangible things. I decided to go with Alex Klineman, take a shot at Tokyo with her.”

The 35-year-old Ross won silver at the 2012 Olympics with Jennifer Kessy and bronze in Rio with Kerri Walsh Jennings.

Ross and Walsh Jennings split last spring. Ross paired with Rio Olympian Lauren Fendrick for the rest of the season.

They won silver at the world championships, when Ross said they would re-evaluate their partnership at the end of the season.

Ross said she trained with “a couple of people” before partnering with Klineman, a 27-year-old who primarily played indoor over the last decade, including at Stanford from 2007-10.

Klineman was the Gatorade National Player of the Year coming out of high school and the Volleyball Magazine National Player of the Year for her senior season at Stanford.

She then gained some indoor national team experience, including playing as a reserve in the 2014 FIVB World Grand Prix but never at the world championships or Olympics.

Klineman also served a 13-month doping ban in 2013 and 2014 after testing positive for a banned substance found in one of her mom’s pills that she took. USADA, in announcing the 13-month ban, accepted that Klineman’s ingestion was inadvertent, and she did not intentionally cheat.

Klineman, who is 6 feet, 5 inches (three inches taller than Walsh Jennings), moved full-time to the beach in 2017, taking AVP Rookie of the Year honors but not playing any international events.

“I watched her a little bit, just after one season on the beach, I thought she was picking up some really good things, was a lot quicker than I expected her to be,” said Ross, who like Klineman played indoor volleyball in college in California (USC). “She has that chip on her shoulder a little bit. It reminds me of me when I got out onto the beach because I wanted to go to the Olympics indoor. I tried training with the national team a bunch and just felt overlooked, like all the time. Things weren’t objective. … She could keep playing indoor [professionally in Europe or Brazil] and keep making a good amount of money. She’s out here on the beach because she wants to go to the Olympics, and she has something to prove.”

Photo Credit Anthony Moore
Olympic Beach Volleyball Bronze Medalist April Ross Is Already Focused on the 2020 Olympics: ‘My Goal Now Is Tokyo’

Aug 02 News

At the 2012 Olympics, April Ross faced off against Kerri Walsh Jennings in the gold medal beach volleyball match in London. Ross ended up taking silver, and immediately found a new partner in three-time gold medalist Walsh Jennings.

Poised and planning to win gold last week in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, their efforts were thwarted by a powerful Brazilian duo who beat them in the semi-finals (Walsh Jenning’s first Olympic defeat in the sport), leaving them to battle it out with another Brazilian team for a bronze medal.

“Coming into the Olympics, I just pictured fighting for gold and that was our goal,” Ross, 34, tells Us Weekly. “I can’t believe how hard it was to mentally and emotionally to come back from that loss and how hard we had to fight in the match to win the bronze. We’re just so grateful for our bronze medal. It honestly, it’s a huge honor to bring that home to America.”

Ross — who headed back to the U.S. before the closing ceremony to prepare for the rest of the sport’s season — is already thinking about getting that elusive gold in Tokyo in 2020.

“My goal now is Tokyo for sure,” the Aussie-sponsored athlete, who favors the 3 Minute Miracle Moist product, explains. “It feels so far away but it just flies by.”

As for her partner, five-time Olympian Walsh Jennings, her future is still up in the air.

“I don’t know what Kerri is going to do yet; she’s going to take time and figure it out and I’ll wait until she does that,” Ross says. “Her level of play is so high right now, so there’s been no fall off. I think she should keep playing.”

Walsh Jennings is, however, keeping her options open.

“I know I can,” she told Us. “I don’t know if I will.”
April Ross: I’m ‘Grateful’ for My Bronze Medal

Aug 02 News

For April Ross, the 2016 Rio Olympics have had both highs and lows.

The lowest point? When she and partner Kerri Walsh Jennings suffered a disappointing loss in the semifinal round, meaning that they wouldn’t win the gold or the silver medal.

The high point? Capturing the bronze in a hard-fought match against Brazil’s top-seeded Larissa Franca and Talita Antunes.

Sitting with PEOPLE in a lounge at the P&G Family Home in Rio, Ross reflected on her Olympic journey.

So what was the feeling when you took bronze?
We were so grateful to get on that podium. We were so devastated after losing in the semis, so it was a huge effort to turn it around and come back ready to play against the No. 1 seeded team in the tournament. They were also upset and wanted that medal really badly.

The bronze medal match was a really tough one.
Oh, it definitely was! We had to fight for it. We lost the first game, and then we were behind in the second, I think 12-9. But there was too much on the line, and we were there to win. No matter what, we could make a comeback. We just needed to stick together, believe in ourselves, and believe in each other. We had to fight for every point.

You were playing Brazilians in Brazil. You were the away team. Did the crowd bother you?
It really didn’t. I enjoy that kind of atmosphere. It gives me a lot of energy. But I also had to get in the zone and not pay attention to it. I was there to win. At the end, I was totally focused on Kerri and winning.

But let me say this: my family was at every single match, decked out in U.S.A. colors, and the crowd was great to them. They had a great time and no negative experience at all. And when the matches were over, the Brazilian fans came up to meet us. Everyone was really nice. They were cheering for their team as hard as they could. I can’t blame them at all for that! I loved them.

Last Olympics, you were playing against Kerri. She won the gold and you won the silver. This time, you were on her team. Was that strange?
It didn’t matter that she was my competitor before at all. We were a new team. It was a different dynamic this time; I felt like a completely different player than I did in London. But Kerri and I got really close, and I think it worked well for us. It was a whole new journey and a whole new story.

So a non-volleyball related question: you’re a new spokesperson for Aussie hair products. Why them?
I’ve always had issues with my hair. It’s curly and frizzy and crazy. And when I started playing beach volleyball, the sand and sun and wind just made my hair crazy. So I chose a product that worked for me and smelled good! That made my decision to work with them really easy.”
Sweating It Up In Rio

Feb 27 Blog

Our second day of double days was again, sweltering in the morning, but I definitely felt better than I did the morning prior (see Blog 1). Marcio arranged for a Brazilian team we didn’t know to be at this practice, which was great because it makes you focus on what you’re doing since there’s no way you can know the other team’s tendencies if you’ve never seen them before. We went longer than normal, and we would have kept playing, but Marcio made us stop because we still had lifting and another practice later.

Immediately following practice we showered and changed for the gym. I thought taking a cold shower would cool me off enough after practice, but I just kept on sweating. As soon as I put on my workout clothes I sweat right through them. I had to keep wiping my face with my sarong because sweat kept dripping in my eyes; I was a mess. (Good thing I brought my Gatorlytes! If you’re sweating that much it’s really important to add electrolytes and potassium to whatever you’re drinking!)

So after I got myself together and downed some yogurt with granola along with tons of water, we drove over to the weight room. ‘Off the court’ training varies SO much from country to country, it’s always interesting to see how different national teams train. In this facility there were a lot of machines and hardly any free weights, one platform (kind of), which is mainly what I use at home, but you learn to use what you’ve got and we both got good lifts in.

Post-lift it was so late we decided to go straight to Sugar Loaf Mountain (our chosen tourist activity of the day), which is the iconic two-peaked mountain you see at the end of the beach in every picture of Rio. There are big gondolas that take you initially to the first peak and then on up to the top. When we got into the first gondola I was still sweating. It was still sweltering. There were a ton of people bunched into this non-air conditioned small space. And they made us wait inside for what felt like forever. Once it started moving, though, I forgot all about that stuff because the views were immediately breathtaking.

We got to the stop on the first peak and had a much needed lunch break. We were surprised when little monkeys started coming at us out of the woodwork from all angles to try and get a nibble of our food. They were everywhere and if they weren’t so tiny and cute it would have been annoying, but I couldn’t get enough of them! One sat on the shoulder of Marcio’s chair for about three minutes just listening to our conversation. I think I have a hundred blurry pictures of them.

After lunch we took the next gondola up to the top. I could not believe how amazing the panoramic views were — it made all the sweating easily worth it. I highly recommend doing this if you’re ever in Rio. We took in the scenery, got some pretty cool photo opps and then needed to head down as it was getting really late and we still had another practice to go.

We got back to the hotel at 5 p.m. (we had left that morning at 9 a.m., just to put it into context). Thankfully, though, our second practice wasn’t until 7 p.m. under the lights on Copacabana Beach. I had just enough time to shower, snack, Instagram, tweet, and Facebook (yes, these are verbs) my favorite shot from the top of Sugar Loaf, and get in a light half-hour power nap before it was time to go again. I use the term “lights” lightly, since once we started practicing it was extremely hard to see, but it was a test of resiliency, patience and overall mental strength.

When we wanted to be frustrated, we just stuck with it and figured out a way to deal, and it turned out to be another great practice. Dinner at 9 p.m. after all of that was a struggle. I tried so hard to convey that I wanted grilled chicken instead of breaded chicken with my dish, but alas, my signing skills are not good enough the waiter did not understand, so I had breaded chicken for dinner, which is NOT in my diet, but what are you going to do? It was delicious. (I have since learned how to say, “I want grilled chicken” in Portuguese.)

Today was a bit more mellow. We had a mandatory press conference with all the American and Brazilian athletes, which was WELL attended by the media, followed by the technical meeting. After those obligations I had a massage scheduled (hey, it’s part of the job), which I could hardly wait for after the wringer I’d been putting my body through. Later in the afternoon, we took advantage of our time slot for training on center court where we will play tomorrow and ran through some drills with Lauren Fendrick and Brooke Sweat. Seems like it’s going to be a fun atmosphere. Our matches are at 5:30 and 7:30 p.m., so we’ll be playing under the (real) lights, which is always exciting.

I’m so pumped for this competition. We’ve only been training a short time, but it’s been a long time since we’ve competed and I’m ready to put it on the line. I don’t know how we’ll do as we are in the middle of sorting out our system and fine tuning things that need fine tuning, but we are going to give it our best and leave it all on the court! Go USA!
Getting Acclimated To Rio

Feb 27 Blog

So if you haven’t heard yet, the top four U.S. beach volleyball teams are competing this week in the USA vs. Brazil Challenge in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It’s always a really fun tournament, the AVP hosted one a few years ago in Arizona and Brazil has hosted them pretty regularly, but this one is especially cool since it’s going to take place at the projected 2016 Olympic beach volleyball venue. It’s still really early in preseason for us Americans — we usually start training at the end of January and don’t have events until the end of April. The Brazilians, on the other hand, have been training and competing for their entire summer (our winter), which is one of the reasons why Kerri and I, along with our coaches, Marcio and Jon, decided to get here a few days early for a short, but intensive training camp.

We flew down yesterday and will do double days for the next few days leading up to the competition. It’s extremely helpful that Marcio grew up in Rio. He has been able to set up courts, transportation, training partners and equipment for our sessions. We had our first training this morning in 100-degree heat, with about the same degree of humidity, no breeze and no clouds. To say my body was slightly shocked after training in the mild California weather and flying for 15 hours yesterday is an understatement, but it felt great and by the end I was definitely better acclimated. Where we get to train in the mornings is on a bay under the gaze of the Christ the Redeemer statue, which is pretty cool to see in the background while siding out.

After practice we ran back to the hotel, had lunch — always a form of rice, beans and meat — overlooking Copacabana Beach, rested a little, hung out at the pool, which has the most amazing view of the beach and Sugar Loaf, and got ready for practice, round two.

But first, acai. Acai bowls are big in California, but if you don’t know, acai is a berry and they blend it with ice and guarana syrup (I go no syrup) and add granola. They originated here, so you have to get them, and it helps that they’re kind of a perfect pick me up right before practice. I can’t get enough!

Our second training was smack dab in the middle of Copacabana Beach. It’s such a crazy experience to train there, it’s normal M.O. is chaos, so it was an equally good exercise in focus. We had about 25 people lining the wall watching our practice at any given time, and the wall is just about five feet from the side line, plus four extra coaches and players helping with our training. At one point there was a police car with sirens going off about 25 feet away for a good five minutes. But it was GORGEOUS! We trained until about sunset and then went in the water and played some foot volley. I could have stayed out there for another couple of hours, but an athlete’s gotta eat. So Kerri and I are going to go grab some more rice, beans and meat, and get ready to do it all again tomorrow!
RAPIDFORCE Inks Endorsement Deal with April Ross & Phil Dalhausser

Feb 19 News

RAPIDFORCE continues to build its roster of brand ambassadors with the addition of two of the best beach volleyball players in the United States.

New York, New York (PRWEB) February 18, 2015

RAPIDFORCE, creator of the world’s first and only pre-cut physio hybrid shapes, has announced the addition of two key members to the RAPIDFORCE Elite Team of brand ambassadors in February. 4-Time FIVB World Tour Champion and 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist Phil Dalhausser and 2012 Olympic Silver Medalist April Ross have signed on as RAPIDFORCE brand ambassadors. These elite athletes join tennis star John Isner as the first official RAPIDFORCE Elite Team members in professional sports.

Phil Dalhausser and his partner Sean Rosenthal were recently named the 2014 Volleyball Team of the Year by USA Volleyball after a stellar season on the sand. Dalhausser helped the duo bring home 3 Gold Medals, 1 Silver and 1 Bronze on the FIVB World Tour finishing the year ranked 2nd in the world overall. “We’re always working out and we play tournaments almost year-round,” said Dalhausser. “From practice to the big stage, the RAPIDFORCE physio hybrid shapes stay in place and give me the comfort of knowing I have extra support where I need it most.” Dalhausser and Rosenthal are currently the top ranked men’s beach volleyball team in the United States.

World Champion April Ross and partner Jennifer Kessy helped the U.S. finish 1-2 atop the podium at the 2012 Summer Olympics following an epic battle with U.S. teammates Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh-Jennings in the final match. In 2014, Ross joined forces with Walsh-Jennings to create another powerhouse duo with a real opportunity to bring home Gold at next year’s Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. After experimenting with the products, Ross commented, “I am super impressed with the premium quality of the RAPIDFORCE physio hybrid shapes. Kerri and I have a big season ahead of us and I’m excited RAPIDFORCE will be joining me on our journey.” Ross and Walsh-Jennings are the #1 ranked U.S. women’s beach volleyball team heading into the 2015 season.

RAPIDFORCE has focused its initial marketing efforts specifically on impacting the volleyball and tennis markets. “These athletes must perform at peak levels on tournament weekends and we know they can’t afford to miss weeks of training,” said RAPIDFORCE VP of Branding and Marketing Jenny Smith-Skwierawski. “We are ecstatic that Phil and April have benefitted from our products and look forward to letting them tell our brand story as RAPIDFORCE Elite Team members.”

About RAPIDFORCE

RAPIDFORCE physio hybrid shapes are innovative new products dedicated to providing simple solutions for muscle support and pain management. Based on the science of physiology and movement, RAPIDFORCE physio hybrid shapes serve as an external indestructible ligament, providing unprecedented support in a dynamic and unobtrusive way. The shapes provide reinforcement and support to overused muscles, painful areas or specific injuries while also allowing for great flexibility. Used by athletes of all levels and individuals of all ages, RAPIDFORCE physio hybrid shapes are easy to apply, providing the user with unending benefits including muscle support, pain relief, increased blood flow and improved range of motion. The seven RAPIDFORCE shapes can be ordered through the website: http://www.rapidforce-phs.com.

About CelebExperts

CelebExperts was created by industry veteran Evan Morgenstein who has a diverse background in talent representation, brand activation, sponsorship procurement, celebrity acquisition, licensing, and other areas of expertise revolving around the utilization of and achieving the greatest impact from a celebrity. To inquire about a possible team or league sponsorship, athlete endorsements or marketing opportunities with RAPIDFORCE contact consulting(at)celebexperts(dot)com, or to speak directly to a corporate consultant please call (919)459-5426.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/rapidforce/brandambassadors/prweb12521602.htm

Read more: http://www.virtual-strategy.com/2015/02/18/rapidforce-inks-endorsement-deal-beach-volleyball-stars-phil-dalhausser-and-april-ross#ixzz3S9MYP3tk
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Read more at http://www.virtual-strategy.com/2015/02/18/rapidforce-inks-endorsement-deal-beach-volleyball-stars-phil-dalhausser-and-april-ross#DRy52IM2lmFkpxcU.99
#Goals

Jan 09 Blog

I know goal setting is a big thing right now, being that it’s early January, so I thought I would share my experiences with it. Every year I would make resolutions, but just recently I started setting goals in volleyball. However, my resolutions would eventually fall off and I got to the point where setting goals caused me more anxiety that they were worth. Thoughts akin to “It means I didn’t work hard enough if I don’t (accomplish this or that goal), or I’m not as good as I need to be if we don’t win” right down to the straight up, “I’m not worthy/deserving of my own support/love if I fail to achieve my goals.” A lot of this is not even thought consciously, but when you sit down and dissect it, you will probably find that if you don’t set goals the right way, this could be how you’re subconsciously treating yourself.

I recently coached a USA Volleyball High Performance Camp down in Chula Vista, I do it every year because it’s so much fun, and I always learn a little something from the kids or the amazing coaches that attend, but this year a pretty bright light bulb was switched on at one of the “class room” sessions. We talked about goal setting, and I don’t know if I never paid close enough attention in the past, but I did not know this was how to set goals until I heard that lesson. My goals have all been outcome related. I.e. I want to win this or that tournament, I want to be at this body weight before season, I want us to hold the number one ranking, etc. Cue anxiety, unhealthy habits, and if it didn’t work out some self reprimanding.

It’s kinda funny because I would always look back at my life and find it a little weird (and feel weird saying it in interviews!) that it was never a goal of mine growing up to make the Olympics, or to win National Championships at USC, or to go undefeated my senior club season, I just didn’t really set goals growing up… but yet I’ve accomplished some pretty cool things. And after this lesson I learned at the HP Camp I started to understand why.

One of the things I am most grateful for in life is the work ethic my parents and coaches I had growing up instilled in me. Every day, to this day, my intention is to do and give my absolute best, to not make excuses, but accept challenges as opportunity… and guess what? Those are actually how you’re supposed to set goals! Goals should not be outcome dependent, but process dependent. This means you should be setting goals that will encourage you to get better day by day, little markers you can measure daily to make sure you’re going in the right direction. Even as little as “Did I give my best today?” You can still want to achieve some hefty things, but accomplishment is not the goal. Doing the best you can to be the best you can be IS the goal, regardless of outcome. And if you do your best it will foster a sense of achievement, confidence, and self-love, which REALLY is the point of playing sports, and to be honest, everything else.

This doesn’t detract from being competitive and wanting to win- that will always be there- but I believe these goals will help me with what I want to achieve in a much healthier and effective way. The key to this (as with everything), though, is self-discipline and keeping yourself accountable on the daily, which is why it’s good to write them down (I’m a big fan of journaling!) and revisit them often. I just read an article about how the Stanford volleyball players write in their journal what they want to work on before each practice, and I think that would be a great habit to adopt. Journaling your food is also a well known and effective way to keep your diet (as in healthy lifestyle, not cutting calories) on point.

I’m so glad this clicked for me because I understand why setting goals is important. Now I know I was just doing it in an unproductive way- you live, you learn, and you grow!

Some of my goals for 2015:
Keep sugar out of my diet
Take my vitamins on the road
Journal before practice
Substitute green tea for my afternoon coffee a few times a week
Speak to myself in a supportive way even after making mistakes
Meditate daily

If you need help with yours, here’s a list of “resolutions” I really like: http://bit.ly/1seCkct

I hope this helps some of you who might have been setting goals the wrong way as well, wishing you a happy 2015!

All photos by Eric Vallely.
2014 Recap with photos!

Nov 12 Blog

What a crazy summer! There were ups, there were downs, great memories made, records set, and LOTS of airline miles accumulated! I learned so much this year, battled hard, and I hope it made me better, but I know it made me stronger. Before I get carried away with the gazillion things I could blog about, I wanted to provide a brief summary (complete with photos!) of our season, so here it is…

Our season started (after three months of preseason) in late April with two events in China.

First in Fuzhou-

Next was Shanghai-

Then we came home for the AVP in St. Pete, FL, where Brad (with John Mayer) and I (with Kerri) both won, becoming only the third couple ever to accomplish that! And, bonus, no hurricane this year!

Next we were off to Moscow for a Grand Slam where we won some furry hats.

Then we stayed out for two more tournaments in Europe…

One in Berlin, where we also celebrated my birthday! Here we are against the Berlin Wall-

Then one in Stavanger, Norway, one of my favorite tournaments! I love the trophy they give for winning it- a Viking sword!

After those three weeks overseas it was back to the U.S. for the second AVP in Milwaukee. I was blown away by the atmosphere of this one and how awesome the fans were!

After the finals of that one it was right to the airport for our flights back to Europe. Gstaad, Switzerland for a week….

(practice against Phil & Rosie, we still owe them burritos for losing standing game. FYI it’s really hard to jumbo Phil.)

Then the Netherlands, where we actually played in two different cities- Amsterdam-

And The Hague- before heading back to the homeland again.

Once we got home, we immediately started preparing for the Long Beach Grand Slam in our backyard. It’s the only World Tour event in the U.S. and we all want to win it. Taking the cake in that one was one of my favorite moments all season. Doing the worm on NBC with Geeter before the finals was pretty sweet too though 🙂

After a quick champagne toast and a shower I headed to LAX to fly out that night in order to make it to Austria in time for the main draw, that was some brutal travel. We always love playing in Klagenfurt, just wish we’d done a little better.

After a disappointing finish, but also, the best party of the season it was time to jump back on that bird and fly home. This time we were home for two weeks, two AVPs, and Brad’s birthday! The first one was in Salt Lake City-

But then we were home for a FULL WEEK! Next up was the Granddaddy of beach volleyball tournaments- The Manhattan Beach Open, which I had never won before.

I was beyond thrilled to earn my plaque on the pier with Kerri! After checking that one off the bucket list we were supposed to go back to Europe, for another Grand Slam in Poland, but after being caught up in the grind for twelve weeks in a row at this point we made a last minute decision to skip it. Our bodies, and to a bigger extend our minds, needed rest. I think we took two days off and then hit the practice court again.

After Poland there was another AVP, this time in Cincinnati, Ohio-

The tournament in Ohio was followed the next weekend by another east coast AVP in Atlantic City, NJ so we decided not to fly all the way back to Cali, but instead stay out in New York for the week.

However, this was no leisurely stroll through Central Park kinda stay in the Big Apple, we went to work doing media for the AVP and pumping up the next event to try and get some New Yorkers down to the upcoming AVP for the weekend.

We did get to catch some US Open action which was really cool to see. My mind just started thinking about how similar beach volleyball and tennis are and how they should be on the same level popularity-wise & business wise…maybe one day.

As a result of all our running around in NYC, I don’t know if I’ve ever been AS exhausted as I was during the first day of the tournament in AC. My whole body hurt, I was so tired, and mentally toast. We managed to hold it together to stay in the winners bracket and I finally had some time to recoup that night and came back, thankfully, with a newfound energy the next day to keep our AVP winning streak alive.

Mercifully, after the Atlantic City AVP we had a TRUE weekend off, the first in about sixteen weeks! It was a great opportunity to catch up with friends and family for a quick minute, definitely mentally rejuvenating.

The Huntington Beach AVP Championship was the following weekend and we showed up ready to clinch our undefeated AVP season. Whitney and Heather definitely came with their A game in the finals, but we were able to hang on and get our names in the record books! It was a very special moment.

But no parties for us, I immediately went home grabbed my bags then headed back to LAX for an overnight flight to Sao Paulo, Brazil for our last tournament of the year! Where it rained the whole time….haha.

Like I said, it was a crazy season, but so great to get it under our belts going forward. We know what we need to do to be prepared for next year and how much time, effort, sacrifice, and strength it’s going to take, but we are definitely up for the challenge!

I have to thank everyone who helped me/us out this year- my husband, my family and friends and fans for all the support- cannot overstate my appreciation for it, our coach Marcio Sicoli and assistant Jon Daze, my strength coach Tim Pelot, my agent Lindsay Kagawa-Colas, all the physios who traveled with us and helped us at home, USAV for their support, and Mizuno for outfitting me in the best and always being there for me! I am so thankful I get to do this and so grateful to everyone who’s agreed to come on this journey with me!
April Ross, Kerri Walsh Jennings interview on Fox 11 Overtime

Nov 06 News

Los Angeles, CA –Beach volleyball superstars Kerri Walsh Jennings and April Ross stopped by FOX 11 Overtime Sunday to talk with Liz Habib about their first year together as a team and their record setting start.

Jennings and Ross paired up after Jenning’s partner Misty May Treanor, retired from beach volleyball after the pair won their third Olympic gold medal in London.

They spoke about how Kerri asked April to team up with her for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio while they were accepting their medals in London in 2012.

April followed through on the invite and the duo started off strong. In fact, they won all 7 AVP Beach Volleyball tournaments in 2014.

Kerri spoke about the challenge she’s had switching sides so she can compete with April. April talked about what it’s like to team up with the best beach volleyball player in the world, and their pursuit of gold in Brazil.

Also, watch their interview about and find out what happened when one of them had a wardrobe malfunction in those skimpy bikinis they wear during competition!

Click here to watch the full interview