Bob Ctvrtlik sport volleyball
Robert Jan "Bob" Ctvrtlik (;
born July 8, 1963) is an American volleyball player, Olympic gold medalist, businessman and former member of the International Olympic Committee. He is a 1985 graduate of Pepperdine University.Playing career
Playing for Pepperdine, Ctvrtlik was the Most Valuable Player in NCAA volleyball in 1985. He also played for Long Beach State in 1983-1984, where he earned all-league honors. In 1982-1983, he was a member of the Long Beach City College Vikings Men's Volleyball team, playing under Vikings head coach Gary Jacobson, where he and longtime friend and doubles partner, Allan Treffry, won the volleyball championship for the State of California. They would eventually be ranked number one in the United States. Ctvrtlik earned all league honors and was awarded the most valuable player in the state championship tournament.
Ctvrtlik subsequently played a year for Long Beach State, under 49ers (now Beach) coach Ray Ratelle. After one year, he transferred to Pepperdine, to play his final collegiate year under the leadership and guidance of coaching legend Marv Dunphy, winning both the NCAA Title and personally, the NCAA's Most Valuable Player Award.
After a successful college volleyball career, Ctvrtlik followed Dunphy to the United States national team, where he quickly earned a starting position. In the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea, Ctvrtlik, playing opposite volleyball legend, Karch Kiraly, earned a gold medal by defeating the Soviet Union in the finals. For several years, Ctvrtlik played professionally in Italy, including winning the well-respected Euro-professional league championship. He returned to the United States Olympic team in preparation for the 1992 Summer Olympics during which time he was awarded the most valuable player in the world on two separate occasions. Competing as team captain in Barcelona, he became one of the colorful "bald eagles" as all of the U.S. men's team players shaved their heads in protest of alleged officiating misconduct. The U.S. team defeated Cuba in the consolation match to take home the bronze medal.
After the Barcelona games, Ctvrtlik returned to Europe to play in the Italian professional league.  He would return to once again join the U.S. national team in preparation for the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Ctvrtlik is credited with improving the team's world ranking from 15th to 4th within a mere 10 months of his return. Ctvrtlik was again awarded the Best Player in the World honor in 1995 but the U.S. men's team would finish a disappointing 7th in the Atlanta Olympics.
Throughout his Olympic years, Ctvrtlik also maintained a highly successful beach career, being one of the top stars on the professional four-man circuit. He also earned the coveted "AAA" beach rating on numerous occasions while playing on the two-man circuit. He retired from volleyball after the 1996 Olympic games.
athletics competitive physical activity physical competition