Russell Holmes: Mormon Athlete

Russell Holmes is an Olympic volleyball player as middle blocker on the US men’s national volleyball team. He participated in the 2012 Olympic Games in London and was an alternate for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. He is also a gold medalist of the 2014 World League and 2015 World Cup as well as a silver medalist of the 2012 World League and a bronze medalist from the 2015 World League.

Holmes was born on July 1, 1982. From the ages of four to seventeen, he played soccer, but with the height of 6’ 8” his friends encouraged him to try volleyball. After graduating from high school in 2001, he served as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ain London and then earned his bachelor’s degree in sociology from Brigham Young University. He played volleyball for BYU and was captain of the men’s team, and the year he graduated he began to play for a number of international clubs such as Mets de Guaynabo (Puerto Rico), Hypo Tirol Innsbruck (Austria), Vivo/Minas (Brazil), Jastrzębski Węgiel and Asseco Resovia Rzeszów (Poland), and Büyükşehir Belediyesi (Turkey). He won several national championships with Austria and Poland.

He is the father of two daughters.