Larson: A true all-rounder on and off the court

LAUSANNE, Switzerland, February 23, 2021 - Practising a variety of sports and playing different volleyball positions in her youth helped Jordan Quinn Larson develop athletic qualities that now seem almost unlimited. The captain of the US national team and a member of the newly established professional league in America is a true all-rounder both on and off the volleyball court.

A young Jordan tried several sports while she was growing up, including football, basketball, softball and track and field. But it was volleyball that took her from her small hometown of Hooper in the state of Nebraska to international glory as a world champion and two-time Olympic medallist. She started playing volleyball at the age of 12 and shone on the courts at high-school and college levels, claiming an NCAA Championship title with the University of Nebraska in 2006.

Her progress did not go unnoticed and Jordan was also called up to the USA's youth national team in her teenage years for the 2003 FIVB Volleyball U18 World Championship in Poland , when she topped the best servers ranking.

Larson’s international career really picked up speed in 2009, however, when she joined the senior American women’s national team and started playing for Russian powerhouse Dinamo Kazan.

Twelve years in the Team USA jersey followed and brought the outside hitter huge international success, peaking in 2014 when the North Americans won gold at the FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship in Italy.

“It was memorable because that year we had a great team with unbelievable chemistry. We were able to pull off a great victory against a very talented China team. I think what made it most special is that it was the first time the United States had ever won a World Championship. It was a huge victory for us!” Larson told Volleyball World.

Larson's international career also includes two Olympic Games, claiming silver at London 2012 and bronze at Rio 2016. The 1.88m-tall athlete also won two FIVB Volleyball Nations League titles (2018, 2019), three golds (2010, 2011, 2015) and a silver at the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix, two silvers and a bronze at the FIVB Volleyball World Cup and a silver and a bronze at the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Champions Cup, alongside individual honours and multiple successes at a continental level.

The 34-year-old standout is now set to experience another edition of the Olympics, after she captained the Americans to a spot at Tokyo 2020 and was the best receiver and second best attacker at the 2019 Tokyo Volleyball Qualification tournament in Shreveport-Bossier City.

In her club career, Larson has played mainly for two clubs, both among the best in the world. She has spent five seasons with both Dinamo Kazan and Eczacibasi VitrA Istanbul and claimed the highest international honours with both. With the Russian club, she won gold at the 2014 FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship and the 2014 CEV Champions League, to add to the continental bronze in 2012.

As a player of the Turkish powerhouse, the American star won the World Championship title twice (2015 and 2016) and world bronze once (2018), as well as 2015 gold and 2017 bronze in the Champions League. In 2015, she was named MVP of both competitions.

After spending a couple of seasons with China’s Shanghai Bright Ubest, Jordan Larson has now committed to playing in the inaugural season of the innovative Athletes Unlimited professional league back at home, in the States. Keen to get this new idea working, she also joined the league's Player Executive Committee so she gets a chance to put forward her leadership skills both on and off the court.

In a recent development, Larson was also among five players elected to the FIVB Athletes’ Commission.