Beverly ("Bev") Oden (born March 9, 1971) is a former volleyball player from the United States. She played middle blocker for the United States women's national volleyball team at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.
Among her achievements, Oden helped the United States win silver medals at the 1994 Goodwill Games in Saint Petersburg and the 1995 Pan American Games in Mar del Plata.
College
Oden played volleyball for Stanford University as a middle blocker and was named the 1990 NCAA Player of the Year. Oden was the first to be named to the AVCA All-America first-team all four years of her collegiate eligibility (1989–1992). In 1991, she won the Honda-Broderick Award (now the Honda Sports Award) as the nation's best female collegiate volleyball player.
In 2001, Oden was inducted into the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame.
Personal life
Oden's sisters, Kim and Elaina, were also Olympians who played on the United States national volleyball team.
Oden made the news in 2007 when she was held in custody by Orange County sheriff deputies near her hometown of Irvine, California in relation to a reported incident. She was released after being questioned and spending an hour and a half inside a police car. She was found to have no connection with the incident in question, and her ordeal prompted local community leaders to form the Oden Commission to hold discussions on racial profiling between residents and law enforcement.
Awards Four-time AVCA All-American — 1989–1992 NCAA Player of the Year — 1990 Honda-Broderick Award — 1991 Goodwill Games silver medal — 1994 Pan American Games silver medal — 1995 Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame — 2001
References
External links Bev Oden at Olympics.com Olympedia profile: Beverly Oden Washington Post profile: Beverly Oden Volleybox.net profile Team USA - 1996 Olympic Volleyball Teams (archived) Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame profile Beverley Oden Bio at About.com (archived)