Kerri Lee Walsh (born August 15, 1978) is an American beach volleyball player. Walsh was born in the U.S. state of California to Tim and Margie Walsh, and grew up in Saratoga, California. As a high school student, she played on the varsity team at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose. Walsh continued on to Stanford University where she won a volleyball national championship, received the Player of the Year Award, and earned a spot on the All American First Team. She has played both indoor and beach volleyball. With her rapidly rising beach volleyball career earnings, she may be one of only a handful of women to become a multi-millionaire from a second-tier sport.

In the 2000 Summer Olympics, she played indoor volleyball, where the United States team finished in fourth place. In the 2004 Summer Olympics, Walsh and Misty May were the American team that won the gold medal for women's beach volleyball. Winning an unprecedented ninety-one matches and 16 tournaments in a row, Walsh and May captured the gold without ever losing a game. Currently Walsh is ranked as the best female volleyball player in the world, and as of 2005 the Kerri Walsh-Misty May duo appear to be almost unstoppable on both the AVP and FIVB Beach Volleyball tours. Further into the future, she is likely to participate in the 2008 Beijing Olympics as a strong seed to win a second gold medal. As beach volleyball is a sport where athletes can perform effectively well into their 30's, such a prediction is within reason.

Beyond winning dozens of tournaments, Kerri is an extremely valuable marketing image for the sport. Her friendly and personable demeanor, great sportsmanship, and imposing presence on the court have done much to fuel the popularity of beach volleyball in the 2000s. She has appeared in several television commercials, and has been a guest on a number of popular talk shows as a result. In February 2006, Kerri Walsh had a guest starring role in an episode of Miami along with several other AVP Volleyball players.

Walsh has also emerged over time as being a somewhat unlikely sex symbol, as in spite of her fitness and bikini-clad attire, such a label has in the past mostly been used about women of a less lanky stature. At 6 ft, 3 inches, tall, she easily towers over most men, sometimes to a striking degree. In addition, the circulation of numerous photographs of her in close physical contact with Misty May have only added to her allure. She often inspires comparison with fellow 6'3" beach volleyball player Gabrielle Reece for her status as a sex symbol, though she has had a much more successful volleyball career.

Kerri currently resides in Redondo Beach, California, and she is married to men's beach volleyball player Casey Jennings, who has won three AVP titles this year. Jennings and Walsh met in 2000, the very same day Misty May "auditioned" Walsh to be her partner. Kerri and Casey dated for four years, and were recently married on December 4, 2005, at the La Quinta Resort in Palm Springs, California. ^*

Walsh also hosts a weekly, one-hour radio show on Sirius Satellite Radio's Faction 28 station. It airs every Sunday morning at 9 AM Eastern time. Walsh is one of many athletes to have a show on Faction 28. Other athletes with shows include Lance Armstrong, Tony Hawk and Bode Miller.

Athens 2004 participation

External links

• Official website of Kerri Walsh
• Kerri Walsh's U.S. Olympic Team bio
• Misty and Kerri.com - Fan web site for Kerri Walsh and Misty May.
• ^* - Web page for Walsh's Sirius radio show.
• Volleyball tips from Kerri Walsh

1978 births | American volleyball players | Beach volleyball players | Olympic volleyball players of the United States | Volleyball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics | Volleyball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics | People from the San Francisco Bay Area | Living people | Olympic beach volleyball players

Kerri Walsh