Five best women’s volleyball players of all time

The sport of volleyball has been in around in some form since the late 1800s and has continued to thrive even today. A decent number of domestic leagues as well as competitions in the world and continental formats and regular Olympics exposure since 1964 means the sport has seen a number of truly great players come and go from the sport. How or what constitutes a truly great player can be differently perceived among fans and experts. However, for this list we will look at accolades won, status in their home country and the overall impact made on the sport. With that in mind, here are the top 5 women’s volleyball players of all time.

Kim Yeon-Koung – Three Asian Games medals in 2010, 2014 and 2018 as well as a European Champions League win might not necessarily seem like the kind of credentials expected from a potential GOAT candidate, but South Korea’s Kim Yeon-Koung is a force of nature on the court. Such were her performances in the 2012 Olympics that she was named MVP of the tournament despite South Korea finishing fourth. She has shone at club level too and is one of the richest volleyball players in the world to boot.

Mireya Luis – Luis was the attacking leader of a dominant Cuban side that won the Olympic Gold in 1992, 1996 and 2000, besides two world championships in 1994 and 1998 besides also winning 3 FIVB World Cups in 1989, 1991 and 1995. Despite her short height – she stood at 5’8” which is not usually the height for spikers – she would dominate the opposition and made a name for herself as one of the best players of her generation.

Fernanda Venturini – The Brazilian is widely considered the greatest indoor volleyball player to emerge from her country and it is not hard to understand why. Her ability to set the tone of the game with her serve was key to her side and she led her club sides to 12 Brazilian championships. She also won three Grand Prix championships in 1994, 1996, 2004 with the Brazil women’s national team as well as an Olympic bronze medal in 1996.

Inna Ryskal – The Soviet Union were the dominant side in volleyball during the 1960s and 70s and Raskal, born in modern-day Baku, Azerbaijan was their best player. She played a key role in Soviet Union winning gold medals in the 1968 and 1972 Olympics for volleyball and they also won the silver medal in the 1976 Olympics. She also was front and centre of their dominance in the European Championships during the time and also led the side to one FIVB World Cup. She was named the second-best women’s player of the 20th century by FIVB.

Regla Torres – Widely considered one of the greatest volleyball players of all time, the Cuban won three Olympic gold medals in 1992, 1996 and 2000, the first of which came when she was only 17 years old. She also went on to win two world championships in 1994 and 1998. She also won three FIVB World Cup titles in 1989, 1991, and 1995. Torres was such a dominant force within a dominant Cuban national team that she was named the FIVB’s greatest player of the 20th century in 2001, when she was only 26.