Beverly Oden

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.^[1]

Beverly Oden
Personal information
Full name	Beverly Jean Oden
Born	March 9, 1971 (1971-03-09) (age 54) Millington, Tennessee, U.S.
Height	6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
College / University	Stanford University
Volleyball information
Position	Middle blocker
Number	7
National team
1992–1996  United States
Medal record Women's volleyball Representing the  United States Goodwill Games 1994 Saint Petersburg Team Pan American Games 1995 Mar del Plata Team

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.^[1]

College

Oden played volleyball for Stanford University as a middle blocker and was named the 1990 NCAA Player of the Year.^[2][3] Oden was the first to be named to the AVCA All-America first-team all four years of her collegiate eligibility (1989–1992).^[4] In 1991, she won the Honda-Broderick Award (now the Honda Sports Award) as the nation's best female collegiate volleyball player.^[5]

In 2001, Oden was inducted into the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame.^[6]

Personal life

Oden's sisters, Kim and Elaina, were also Olympians who played on the United States national volleyball team.^[3]

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.^[7] She was released after being questioned and spending an hour and a half inside a police car.^[7] 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.^[7][8]

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