Richard Edward "Rich" Lambourne (born May 6, 1975) is an American indoor volleyball player. He joined the
U.S. men's national team in 2000 as the designated libero. He has recently played for
Delecta Bydgoszcz. Lambourne made his Olympic debut at the
2008 Olympics, helping Team USA to a gold medal.
High school and personal life
Lambourne was born in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
, to Paul and Ann Lambourne. He grew up in
Tustin, California
Tustin is a city located in Orange County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. In 2020, Tustin had a population of 80,276. The city is located next to the county seat, Santa Ana, and does not include the unincorporated community ...
, and attended
Foothill High School.
Lambourne was badly injured during a bike accident when he was 6. He skinned his shoulder to the bone and mangled the right side of his face. He says of the accident, "I could have been much uglier but due to my loving parents and medical science, I am only mostly unattractive".
He served a mission in
Hokkaido
is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel.
The lar ...
, Japan, for
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...
.
College
Lambourne attended
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...
where he majored in
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
. He was also recruited by
Stanford and
Long Beach State.
In 1999, he was the starting outside hitter for the
BYU men's volleyball team that won the program's first ever
NCAA men's volleyball championship
The NCAA men's volleyball tournament, officially titled the NCAA National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Championship, is an annual competition that determines the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship in American college men ...
. For the year, he played in 82 games and posted 252 kills, 205 digs, 88 blocks and a .348 hitting percentage.
Career
Lambourne began to play professional volleyball for
Lamia
LaMia Corporation S.R.L., operating as LaMia (short for ''Línea Aérea Mérida Internacional de Aviación''), was a Bolivian charter airline headquartered in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, as an EcoJet subsidiary. It had its origins from the failed ...
, a
club
Club may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Club'' (magazine)
* Club, a '' Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character
* Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards
* Club music
* "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea''
Brands and enterprises ...
from Greece. His next club was
Aon hotVolleys Vienna. After that, he went to
Noliko Maaseik
Greenyard Maaseik is a Belgian professional men's volleyball club from the city of Maaseik. They compete in the Euro Millions Volley League.
Honours Domestic
* Belgian Championship
:Winners (16): 1990–91, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 199 ...
, then to Polish
Mlekpol AZS Olsztyn, then to the Russian Lokomotiv-Belogorie. He represented Polish
Delecta Bydgoszcz. As of February 24, 2010 he has been disciplinary released.
Clubs
* Aon hotVolleys Vienna (2001–2003)
* Piet Zoomers Apeldoorn (2003–2004)
* Lamia (2004–2005)
* Noliko Maaseik (2005–2006)
* AZS Olsztyn (2006–2008)
* Lokomotiv-Belogorie (2008–2009)
* Delecta Bydgoszcz (2009–2010)
* Fart Kielce (2011–2012)
* Al Arabi S.C. (2012–2013)
International competitions
Recent international competition
*2008
**Olympic Games (gold medal)
**FIVB World League (gold medal)
**NORCECA Continental Olympic Qualifying Championship (gold medal)
*2007
**FIVB World Cup
**NORCECA Continental Championship (gold medal)
**America's Cup (gold medal)
**FIVB World League (bronze medal)
*2005
**NORCECA Continental Championships (gold medal)
**World Grand Champions Cup (silver medal)
Individual awards
*''
2006 Pan-American Cup "Best Defender"''
*''
2007 FIVB World League "Best Libero"''
*''
2008 FIVB World League "Best Libero"''
External links
*
*
BYU Cougar Bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lambourne, Richard
1975 births
Living people
American men's volleyball players
AZS Olsztyn players
Sportspeople from Louisville, Kentucky
Sportspeople from Orange County, California
BYU Cougars men's volleyball players
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in volleyball
Volleyball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Latter Day Saints from California
Latter Day Saints from Kentucky
American Mormon missionaries in Japan
Volleyball players at the 2007 Pan American Games
American expatriate sportspeople in Poland
Expatriate volleyball players in Poland
Volleyball players at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States
Pan American Games medalists in volleyball
Medalists at the 2007 Pan American Games
Liberos