Misty Elizabeth May-Treanor (; née May; born July 30, 1977) is a retired American professional

beach volleyball Beach volleyball is a team sport played by two teams of two or more players on a sand court divided by a net. Similar to indoor volleyball, the objective of the game is to send the ball over the net and to ground it on the opponent's side of th ...

player. She is a three-time Olympic gold medalist, and , was the most successful female beach volleyball player having won 112 tournaments in domestic and international competition. May-Treanor and teammate

Kerri Walsh Jennings Kerri Lee Walsh Jennings (born August 15, 1978) is an American professional beach volleyball player, three-time Olympic gold medalist, and a one-time Olympic bronze medalist. She is the beach volleyball leader in career victories as of 2016 hav ...

were gold medalists in beach volleyball at the

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

and

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, th ...

. They also won the

FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships The FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships is the double-gender world championship for the sport of beach volleyball organized by the ' ( FIVB) the sport's global governing body. The first official edition of the event was held in Los Angel ...

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A ...

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; " Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discover ...

and

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...

. The pair set various records throughout their partnership, including a win streak of 112 consecutive matches (19 consecutive tournament titles) in 20072008, breaking their own previous record of 89 consecutive match wins. They have been called "the greatest beach volleyball team of all time." May-Treanor retired from competitive play on August 8, 2012, after she and Walsh Jennings won gold in the 2012 Summer Olympics. She was inducted into the

Volleyball Hall of Fame The International Volleyball Hall of Fame (IVHF) was founded to honor extraordinary players, coaches, officials, and leaders who have made significant contributions to the game of volleyball. The Hall of Fame is located in Holyoke, Massachusetts, ...

in 2016.

Early life and education

May was born in 1977 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

to Barbara (née Grubb), a nationally ranked tennis player, and Butch May, a member of the 1968

United States men's national volleyball team The United States men's national volleyball team represents the country in international competitions and friendly matches. The team is governed by USA Volleyball. The team has won five Olympic medals, including three gold. History As the birt ...

. She has two older half brothers, Brack and Scott. She grew up playing beach volleyball with her parents at the

Santa Monica Pier The Santa Monica Pier is a large double-jointed pier at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California, United States. It contains a small amusement park, concession stands, and areas for views and fishing. Attractions Pacific Park T ...

, and at age 8 teamed with her father to play in her first beach volleyball tournament. May also played soccer and tennis, as well as participating in dance. She attended primary school at Brightwood Elementary School in Monterey Park and Roosevelt Elementary School in

Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to i ...

. As a child, she was baby-sat by Karch Kiraly, future national volleyball player and

United States women's national volleyball team The United States women's national volleyball team participates in international volleyball competitions and friendly games, and is governed by USA Volleyball. The current head coach is three-time Olympic gold medalist and retired dominant beac ...

head coach. In her 2010 autobiography, May-Treanor stated both of her parents were alcoholics. She also asserted her mother would at times become violent when drinking. From the age of 4 to 15, she lived with her grandparents. In 1988, her father committed to living his life sober after an automobile accident in which he struck and nearly killed a motorcyclist.

Education

High school

May grew up in

Costa Mesa, California Costa Mesa (; Spanish for " Table Coast") is a city in Orange County, California. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to an urban area including part of the South Coast Plaza–John ...

,Misty May-Treanor – Profile
Beach Volleyball Database attending

Newport Harbor High School Newport Harbor High School is a public high school in Newport Beach, in Orange County, California, in the United States. It is part of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District. The school primarily serves students in western Newport Beach and sou ...

from 1991 through 1995. She helped her team win the state championship in volleyball in both her sophomore and senior years, 1992 and 1994. During her junior year in 1993 she was named the Division I All- CIF team Player of the Year, and the following year she was selected by ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' as the best high school girls' volleyball player in the nation. While at Newport Harbor High she also competed in

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

, excelling in the high jump. At the

CIF California State Meet The CIF California State Meet is the annual championship track and field meet for the California Interscholastic Federation. The meet was started in 1915 for boys and 1974 for girls. Every athlete in every high school in California has a dir ...

in 1993 she finished second in the high jump to future heptathlete,

Tracye Lawyer Tracye Lawyer (born August 28, 1977, in Santa Barbara, California) is an American heptathlon, heptathlete. In international competition, she won the heptathlon at the 2000 NACAC Under-25 Championships in Athletics. She also took silver at the i ...

. May-Treanor was later inducted into the inaugural class of the Newport Harbor High School's Hall of Fame in 2014.

College

May-Treanor played volleyball for the

Long Beach State 49ers Long Beach State athletics, or simply Beach athletics (previously known as the 49ers), are the athletic teams that represent California State University, Long Beach. Teams compete in 19 sports at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NC ...

from 1995 to 1999. The 1998 team that May captained was the first women's NCAA volleyball team to have an undefeated season. She graduated with a BA in

kinesiology Kinesiology () is the scientific study of human body movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, anatomical, biomechanical, pathological, neuropsychological principles and mechanisms of movement. Applications of kinesiology to human heal ...

and fitness in 2002 and was inducted into the Long Beach State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2004. During her tenure there, she racked up numerous

Big West Conference The Big West Conference (BWC) is an American collegiate athletic conference whose member institutions participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. The conference was originally formed on July 1, 1969, as the Pacifi ...

and NCAA awards and honors, including the

Honda Sports Award The Honda Sports Award is an annual award in the United States, given to the best collegiate female athlete in each of twelve sports. There are four nominees for each sport, and the twelve winners of the Honda Sports Award are automatically in th ...

for the nation's best female volleyball player, and the

Honda-Broderick Cup The Honda-Broderick Cup is a sports award for college-level female athletes. The awards are voted on by a national panel of more than 1000 collegiate athletic directors. It was first presented by Tom Broderick, an American owner of a women's sports ...

for the best overall female collegiate athlete for 1998–99, and back-to-back

National Player of the Year National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

awards in 1997 and 1998.

1998 NCAA championship

As the starting setter in 1998, May-Treanor led

Long Beach State University California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) is a public research university in Long Beach, California. The 322-acre campus is the second largest of the 23-school California State University system (CSU) and one of the largest universities ...

to the Division I NCAA Women's Volleyball Championship with a 36–0 record. She shared the NCAA Championship Most Outstanding Player award after setting a tournament record with 20 service aces.

Graduate school

She attended

Concordia University Concordia University (French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the t ...

Irvine, California Irvine () is a master-planned city in South Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the 1960s and the city was formally incorporated on December 28, 197 ...

to earn a master's degree in coaching and athletic administration. Her degree was conferred on May 4, 2013.

Professional career

1999–2000: Early career with Holly McPeak

May played her first professional match on the AVP tour in May 1999 while still a college senior. After graduating from Long Beach State in 1999, she joined the

. After a few months she quit the national team to focus on beach volleyball, teaming with

Holly McPeak Holly McPeak (born May 15, 1969 in Manhattan Beach, California) is a retired American indoor and beach volleyball player. McPeak was three-times an Olympian in beach volleyball. In the professional circuit, she garnered 72 career beach volleybal ...

. The pair played their first tournament together on the FIVB tour in Salvador, Brazil in November 1999. Seeded 22nd, McPeak/May finished 9th. The 2000 season saw the team of May and McPeak find success, both in domestic and international competitions. They won their first tournament together in April at a USAV event, followed by two wins on the FIVB tour, and one on the now-defunc
BVA
May was selected as the BVA Rookie of the Year for 2000. With three FIVB tournament wins and no finishes lower than 5th, the pair qualified for one of the two US Olympic berths, a goal McPeak was looking for when she first partnered with May. At the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

the pair won in the opening round and in the round of 16 before losing 16–14 in a hard-fought quarterfinal match against

Sandra Pires Sandra Pires Tavares (born June 16, 1973, in Rio de Janeiro) is a female beach volleyball player from Brazil, who won the gold medal in the inaugural women's beach volleyball tournament at the 1996 Summer Olympics, partnering Jackie Silva. She ...

and

Adriana Samuel Adriana Samuel Ramos (born April 12, 1966) is a Brazilian volleyball and beach volleyball player, who won the silver medal in the inaugural women's beach volleyball tournament at the 1996 Summer Olympics, partnering with Mônica Rodrigues. Samu ...

of Brazil. The quarterfinal loss left the team in a tie for 5th place at the

2000 summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

2001 to Beijing 2008: Dominance with partner Kerri Walsh

After completing the 2000 season with McPeak, May teamed up with a new partner Kerri Walsh, playing as a defender behind Walsh's block. Rather than play on the newly reformed AVP tour, the duo spent the 2001 and 2002 seasons gaining valuable experience competing on the international FIVB tour. They won their first FIVB tour championship in 2002. In 2003, May and Walsh signed with the AVP. They received "Team of the Year" honors after having an undefeated domestic season, going 39–0 in match victories with eight tournament wins. On the 2003 international tour, May-Treanor and Walsh went 52–4 in match victories. For nearly the entire period from their initial partnering in 2001, to their respective hiatuses in late 2008, May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings dominated both the AVP and FIVB beach volleyball tours. At one point, May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings had a win streak of 112 consecutive matches and 19 straight tournaments that lasted from August 2007 to August 2008, breaking their own previous record of 89 consecutive match wins and 15 straight tournaments, set before the 2004 Summer Olympics.

After Beijing

Following their gold medal victory at the Beijing Olympics, May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings returned to the 2008 AVP Tour. Their win streak of 112 matches was broken with an upset victory by fellow 2008 Olympians Nicole Branagh and Elaine Youngs at the AVP Shootout in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line w ...

. May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings lost again on September 7, falling to

April Ross April Elizabeth Ross (born June 20, 1982) is an American beach volleyball player and three-time Olympic medalist. She won a silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics with Jennifer Kessy, a bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics with Kerri Walsh ...

and Jennifer Kessy in the semifinals of an AVP tournament in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning " Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West ...

, marking the first time since April 2007 that the duo missed reaching an AVP tour final. For the 2010 season, with Walsh Jennings taking a break from competition for the birth of her second son, May-Treanor teamed up with Branagh. The two won several tournaments together, but struggled for much of the year.

Injuries

May-Treanor played much of her 2002 season with a torn PCL before undergoing surgery that September. Soon after winning her gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, May-Treanor ruptured her

achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus ...

during dance practice for a performance on the show ''

Dancing with the Stars ''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the form ...

''. It was successfully repaired, though she did not return to competition for nearly a year.

Retirement

May-Treanor, just prior to teaming with Kerri Walsh-Jennings for a third straight gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics, announced that she was retiring from beach volleyball. She confirmed this shortly after the Olympics victory. May-Treanor completed her Graduate Degree with Concordia University Irvine and received a master's degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration.

Coaching

May-Treanor was a member of the women's volleyball coaching staff at Irvine Valley College beginning in 2001, though she is no longer listed as a staff member. IVC head coach, Tom Pestolesi, was her high school volleyball coach. As of July 2016, she serves as the Director of Volleyball a
Long Beach City College
where she coaches the women's indoor and beach volleyball teams. The LBCC indoor and beach teams thrived under her leadership. In the 2016–17 season, the Vikings went 16-5 and won their first conference title in 16 years, also qualifying for the state playoffs where they made it to the second round. For beach, they were successful in their inaugural year, making it to the state finals and having one of the teams win the state title. In the 2017–18 season, the indoor team went 18-5 and again lost in the second round of playoffs. She also owns a beach volleyball club called Dream in Gold (DIG) to train the next generation of beach volleyball players.

Olympic history

Sydney 2000

Affected by an abdominal injury in her first Olympics, May finished fifth with partner Holly McPeak in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Athens 2004

Riding a 90-match win streak, May and Walsh continued their winning ways through the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

. In semifinal play, the pair defeated fellow Americans — and May's former partner —

and partner Elaine Youngs. May and Walsh defeated Brazil in the championship match to win the gold medal. The duo did not lose a single set in all seven matches.

Beijing 2008

On August 21, May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings repeated as Olympic gold medalists, defeating the first-seeded Chinese team in two games. They are the only beach volleyball team to repeat as gold medalists. May-Treanor was named the Most Outstanding Player for the women's competition.

London 2012

May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings competed in the

in London. In the preliminary round, they extended their Olympic winning streak to 32 consecutive sets without a loss with wins over Australia and the Czech Republic. The streak came to an end when they lost their first set to the Schwaiger sisters from Austria; May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings went on to win the match 17–21, 21–8, 15–10. May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings defeated fellow Americans

and Jennifer Kessy in the final to claim the gold medal (21–16, 21–16).

Politics and philanthropy

May-Treanor serves as a Sports Ambassador for Special Olympics Southern California. In May 2018, May-Treanor was appointed by President Trump, to the

President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition The President's Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition (PCSFN) is an American government organization that aims to "promote, encourage and motivate Americans of all ages to become physically active and participate in sports". It is part of the ...

, where she served as a co-chair.

Personal life

May began dating professional baseball catcher, Matt Treanor, in January 2004. The two later wed in November of that year. She and her husband reside in

Coral Springs, Florida Coral Springs, officially the City of Coral Springs, is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. The city is located approximately northwest of Fort Lauderdale. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 134,394. It is a ...

. They also own a home in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

. May-Treanor gave birth to the couple's first child, Malia Barbara, on June 3, 2014. The couple later welcomed fraternal twin girls, Mele Elizarin and Mia Kanoelani, on November 9, 2017. May-Treanor has two half brothers; Brack is a chef and competed on the

Food Network Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a joint venture and general partnership between Warner Bros. Discovery Networks (which holds a 69% ownership stake of the network) and Nexstar Media Group ( ...

show '' Chopped''. Both May-Treanor's maternal aunt,

Betty Ann Grubb Stuart Betty Ann Grubb Stuart (born February 26, 1950) is a retired American professional tennis player. She had her most significant success in doubles, including reaching the final of the 1977 US Open with Renée Richards as her partner. Personal l ...

, and maternal first cousin,

Taylor Dent Taylor Phillip Dent (born April 24, 1981) is a retired professional tennis player from the United States. He reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 21, winning 4 singles titles. Career Early career and back injury Dent won ATP tit ...

, were professional tennis players. In her 2010 memoir, May-Treanor revealed she had been sexually assaulted while in college, pressed charges against her assailant, and testified at the trial. A tattoo on May-Treanor's shoulder of an angel with the initials "B.M." is a dedication to her mother, Barbara May, who died of cancer in 2002.

Television and film appearances

May-Treanor has made numerous minor television appearances, including ''

'', episodes of ''

CSI: Miami ''CSI: Miami'' (''Crime Scene Investigation: Miami'') is an American police procedural drama television series that ran from September 23, 2002 until April 8, 2012 on CBS. Featuring David Caruso as Lieutenant Horatio Caine, Emily Procter as Detec ...

'', '' Wizards of Waverly Place'', and the ''

Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production ...

''. In 2008, she competed in season 7 of ''Dancing with the Stars'' with partner,

Maksim Chmerkovskiy Maksim "Maks" Aleksandrovich Chmerkovskiy ( uk, Максим Олександрович Чмерковський ; born January 17, 1980) is a Ukrainian-American Latin–ballroom dance champion, choreographer, and instructor. He is widely known ...

. May-Treanor ruptured her

Achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus ...

during a training session for the show, and was consequently forced to withdraw from the competition. Following the 2008 Olympics, May-Treanor appeared in an episode of the Disney series '' Wizards of Waverly Place''. On August 14, 2012, she appeared on '' The Daily Show with Jon Stewart''. May-Treanor appeared alongside Jennifer Kessy in the season 9 episode of '' Hell's Kitchen'' as chef's table guest in the red kitchen.

Awards and honors

College

Big West Conference

May-Treanor's honors in the Big West Conference include: * Big West Conference Freshman of the Year 1995 * All-Big West First Team (4): 1995–1998 * Big West Player of the Year (3): 1996–1998 * Big West Player of the Week – 6 times

NCAA

* NCAA Division I First Team All-American 1997, 1998 *

1997, 1998 *

1998–99 *

1998–99 * NCAA Championship Most Outstanding Player, 1998

Professional

AVP

* AVP Best Defensive Player (3): 2006–2008 * AVP Best Offensive Player (5): 2004–2008 * AVP Crocs Cup Champion (3): 2006–2008 (all with Kerri Walsh) * AVP Most Valuable Player (4): 2005–2008 * AVP Team of the Year (6): 2003–2008 (all with Kerri Walsh)

FIVB

* FIVB Best Defender (2): 2007–2008 * FIVB Best Attacker (3): 2005, 2007–2008 * FIVB Best Setter (1): 2005 * FIVB Most Outstanding (2): 2005, 2008 * FIVB Sportsperson (2): 2007, 2008 * FIVB Tour Champion (1): 2002 (with Kerri Walsh)

BVA

* BVA Rookie of the Year 2000

Others

Olympics

* Most Outstanding Player at the 2004/2008 Summer Olympics.

Women's Sports Foundation

* Sportswoman of the Year Award (2): 2004, 2006 (with Kerri Walsh)

Hall of Fame

May-Treanor has been inducted into the following Halls of Fame: * Long Beach State Athletics Hall of Fame (2004) * Newport Harbor High School Hall of Fame (2014) * International

(2016) * Southern California Indoor Hall of Fame (2017)

Achievements

* Most women's career tournament victories: 112 * Most women's career earnings: $2,132,733 * Most women's international career wins: 43 * Record win streak of 112 consecutive matches and 19 straight tournaments that lasted from August 2007 to August 2008

References

External links

Early life and education

Education

High school

College

1998 NCAA championship

Graduate school

Professional career

1999–2000: Early career with Holly McPeak

2001 to Beijing 2008: Dominance with partner Kerri Walsh

After Beijing

Injuries

Retirement

Coaching

Olympic history

Sydney 2000

Athens 2004

Beijing 2008

London 2012

Politics and philanthropy

Personal life

Television and film appearances

Awards and honors

College

Big West Conference

NCAA

Professional

AVP

FIVB

BVA

Others

Olympics

Women's Sports Foundation

Hall of Fame

Achievements

References

Further reading

External links