Joël Despaigne Charles (born 2 July 1966, in Santiago de Cuba), more commonly known as Joël Despaigne, is a retired volleyball player from Cuba who represented his native country in two consecutive

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

: the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

in Barcelona (fourth place) and the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

in Atlanta (sixth place). He was the captain of the Cuban national volleyball team in the early 1990s. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Despaigne, known by his nickname "El Diablo" ("The Devil"), was considered among the best volleyball players in the world. He was known for his jumping ability, with a vertical jump estimated to be around 40 inches (1.02 m). He was a powerful spiker, with a spike speed of about 75 miles per hour (121 kph). He had about 350 appearances with the Cuban national team. Despaigne led the Cuban team to the gold medal at the 1989 FIVB World Cup in Japan. He also helped the Cuban team win the silver medal at the 1990 FIVB World Championship in Brazil, and was named the best player in the world in 1990 by the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB). He then helped the Cuban team win the gold medal at the

1991 Pan American Games The 1991 Pan American Games were held in Havana, Cuba from August 2 to August 18, 1991. There were 4,519 athletes from 39 countries of the Pan American Sports Organization, PASO community, with events in 33 different sports. The main stadium was ...

in Havana, followed by the silver medal at the 1991 FIVB World Cup in Japan. In 2020, Despaigne won a Fair Play Menarini International Award in the category of "Fair Play" for his sportsmanship.

Coaching

Despaigne lives in Italy and works as a volleyball coach.

Personal life

Despaigne married María Teresa Santamaría, who was a member of the Cuban women's national volleyball team in the 1980s.

References

External links

Joël Despaigne at Olympics.com
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Volleybox.net Profile

(archived)
Spike by Joel Despaigne
(YouTube) {{DEFAULTSORT:Despaigne, Joel 1966 births Living people Sportspeople from Santiago de Cuba Cuban men's volleyball players Volleyball players at the 1992 Summer Olympics Volleyball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Olympic volleyball players for Cuba Iraklis V.C. players Pan American Games gold medalists for Cuba Pan American Games bronze medalists for Cuba Pan American Games medalists in volleyball Central American and Caribbean Games gold medalists for Cuba Competitors at the 1990 Central American and Caribbean Games Volleyball players at the 1991 Pan American Games Volleyball players at the 1995 Pan American Games Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in volleyball Medalists at the 1991 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1995 Pan American Games 20th-century Cuban people