Regla Torres Herrera (born 12 February 1975) is a Cuban former volleyball player who won three Olympic gold medals with the Cuban women's national volleyball team. Torres began playing on the international circuit at the age of 14. As a middle blocker, she was a key player in the dominance of the Cuban national team of the 1990s.
In 2001, Torres was the recipient of the "Best Player of the 20th Century" award by the FIVB and was inducted into the
International 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 ...
.
Early life
Torres was born in
Havana, Cuba
Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. Since she was a young girl, Torres was encouraged by teachers to play sports due to her height. Though her parents separated while she was in primary school, both were involved in her upbringing. While Torres was more interested in the high jump than volleyball, her mother insisted that she focus on the latter. In the fourth grade, Torres was sent to a sports school to develop her athletic talent. At the age of 14, she was sent to the Cerro Pelado school, where she quickly developed her volleyball skills. She then joined the national team in 1989.
Career
Olympic Games
Torres won her first Olympic gold medal in
1992
1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General.
* January 6
** The Republ ...
in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
at the age of 17. She helped her team to additional gold medals at the
1996 Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
in
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
and the
2000 Olympics
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...
in
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, achieving the extraordinary feat of winning three Olympics in a row. She was selected as the best spiker at the Sydney Olympics.
Pan American Games
Torres helped the Cuban team to the gold medal at the
1991 Pan American Games
The 1991 Pan American Games, officially known as the XI Pan American Games () and commonly known as Havana 1991 (), were held in Havana, Cuba from 2 to 18 August 1991. There were 4,519 athletes from 39 countries of the Pan American Sports Organi ...
in Havana, at the age of 16. She won another gold medal with the national team at the
1995 Pan American Games
The 1995 Pan American Games, officially known as the XII Pan American Games () and commonly known as Mar del Plata 1995, were held in Mar del Plata, Argentina, from 12 to 26 March 1995. After 44 years, this was the Pan American Games' first retur ...
in Mar del Plata.
World Cups and World Championships
Torres helped Cuba win gold medals at the
1991
It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...
Torres won additional gold medals with the Cuban team at the
1993
The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as:
* International Year for the World's Indigenous People
The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...
* Three-time Olympic gold medal — 1992, 1996, 2000
* Two-time FIVB World Cup gold medal — 1991, 1995
* Two-time Pan American Games gold medal — 1991, 1995
* Two-time FIVB World Grand Prix gold medal — 1993, 2000
* Two-time FIVB World Championship gold medal — 1994, 1998
* Two-time FIVB World Championship MVP — 1994, 1998
* Olympic best spiker, MVP — Sydney 2000
* FIVB Best Player of the 20th Century — 2001
* International Volleyball Hall of Fame — 2001
International 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 ...