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YUMILKA RUIZBorn: May 8, 1978 in Camagüey, Cuba
Enshrined: 2023 Country: Cuba Category: Indoor Player |
BIOGRAPHY
One could argue that the Cuban national women’s volleyball team in the 1990s and early 2000s was the greatest dynasty in the sports’ history.
They won Olympic gold medals in three consecutive Games, which has never happened before or since, added a bronze in 2004 for good measure and also won World Championships in 1994 and 1998.
A whopping five members of those dominant Cuban teams are already in the International Volleyball Hall of Fame, along with their coach Eugenio George. Yumilka Ruiz now joins her teammates in volleyball immortality.
Ruiz, at just 5-foot-10, was an outside hitter who won gold in the 1996 Atlanta Games and again in 2000 in Sydney. She served as captain of the 2004 team that won bronze, and her Olympic career ended in 2008 when the Cubans finished fourth.
Those Cuban teams were characterized by players like Ruiz, who could seemingly jump out of the gym, were extremely quick and could hit the ball as hard as could be imagined. But to focus on Ruiz’s accomplishments solely with the Cuban national team would be to shortchange her legacy.
Ruiz was an outstanding club player in Cuba, Italy and Russia. She helped Reggio Calabria finish second at the Italian Championships in 1999 and 2000, and in 2000 won the Italian Cup, the Italian Super Cup, and the CEV Cup. In 2005 she led her squad to the Russian Super League title.
She started volleyball at a young age. When she was 8, Ruiz picked up a volleyball and was immediately hooked.
Early on she exhibited the characteristics that typified most of the top Cuban players of her era, great jumping ability, and, as she puts it, “speed in movements.” She looked to her country-mates for inspiration, including fellow IVHF inductee Mireya Luis, because almost all of them played outside hitter like Ruiz.
Getting a taste of international play early on, Ruiz was only 18 when she made the national team and won the second of those three gold medals in Atlanta.
From day one Ruiz was constantly under pressure to fend off fellow hungry “Caribbean Girls,” to keep her slot on the national team. Although always laser focused on overall team objectives, Ruiz was still recognized for her achievements as a terminal player. She picked up Most Valuable Player, Best Spiker and Best Scorer recognition at multiple international competitions.
But while her playing accomplishments were extraordinary, her leadership qualities also were noticed. In 2008, Ruíz was elected as an athlete member of the International Olympic Committee, serving from 2008-16, and she was also named to the IOC Sport and Active Society Commission.
For her excellence and leadership on and off the volleyball court throughout the Golden Era of Cuban volleyball, we are proud to induct Indoor Player Yumilka Ruiz, from Cuba, to the International Volleyball Hall of Fame, Class of 2023.
They won Olympic gold medals in three consecutive Games, which has never happened before or since, added a bronze in 2004 for good measure and also won World Championships in 1994 and 1998.
A whopping five members of those dominant Cuban teams are already in the International Volleyball Hall of Fame, along with their coach Eugenio George. Yumilka Ruiz now joins her teammates in volleyball immortality.
Ruiz, at just 5-foot-10, was an outside hitter who won gold in the 1996 Atlanta Games and again in 2000 in Sydney. She served as captain of the 2004 team that won bronze, and her Olympic career ended in 2008 when the Cubans finished fourth.
Those Cuban teams were characterized by players like Ruiz, who could seemingly jump out of the gym, were extremely quick and could hit the ball as hard as could be imagined. But to focus on Ruiz’s accomplishments solely with the Cuban national team would be to shortchange her legacy.
Ruiz was an outstanding club player in Cuba, Italy and Russia. She helped Reggio Calabria finish second at the Italian Championships in 1999 and 2000, and in 2000 won the Italian Cup, the Italian Super Cup, and the CEV Cup. In 2005 she led her squad to the Russian Super League title.
She started volleyball at a young age. When she was 8, Ruiz picked up a volleyball and was immediately hooked.
Early on she exhibited the characteristics that typified most of the top Cuban players of her era, great jumping ability, and, as she puts it, “speed in movements.” She looked to her country-mates for inspiration, including fellow IVHF inductee Mireya Luis, because almost all of them played outside hitter like Ruiz.
Getting a taste of international play early on, Ruiz was only 18 when she made the national team and won the second of those three gold medals in Atlanta.
From day one Ruiz was constantly under pressure to fend off fellow hungry “Caribbean Girls,” to keep her slot on the national team. Although always laser focused on overall team objectives, Ruiz was still recognized for her achievements as a terminal player. She picked up Most Valuable Player, Best Spiker and Best Scorer recognition at multiple international competitions.
But while her playing accomplishments were extraordinary, her leadership qualities also were noticed. In 2008, Ruíz was elected as an athlete member of the International Olympic Committee, serving from 2008-16, and she was also named to the IOC Sport and Active Society Commission.
For her excellence and leadership on and off the volleyball court throughout the Golden Era of Cuban volleyball, we are proud to induct Indoor Player Yumilka Ruiz, from Cuba, to the International Volleyball Hall of Fame, Class of 2023.
