Yumilka Daysi Ruíz Luaces (born 8 May 1978) is a Cuban retired

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

player who represented her native country in four consecutive

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

, starting in 1996. She won Olympic gold medals with the

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...

in 1996 and 2000. She also claimed the bronze at the

2004 Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

. As an outside hitter, she was integral to the dominance of the Cuban team in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In 2023, Ruíz was inducted into the

International Volleyball Hall of Fame The International Volleyball Hall of Fame (IVHF) was founded to honor extraordinary players, coaches, officials, and leaders who have made significant contributions to the game of volleyball. The Hall of Fame is located in Holyoke, Massachusetts ...

Club volleyball

Ruíz played the 2004–05 season with the Russian club Uralochka-NTMK, where she set the record of scoring 53 points in a single match and led her team to the championship title. Ruíz retired in 2008 at age 30. At , she had a jump reach of at the peak of her career. After three years of inactivity, Ruíz made a comeback in 2012 to play in Russian League for Uralochka-NTMK Ekaterinburg, and participated in the European Champions League. She retired in 2014.

International Olympic Committee

In August 2008, Ruíz was elected to an eight-year term to the Athletes' Commission of the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

by athletes that cast votes.

Clubs

* Medinex Reggio Calabria (1996–2000) * Ciudad Habana (2000–2006) * Uralochka-NTMK (2004–2005) * Camagüey (2006–2008) * Uralochka-NTMK (2012–2014)

Awards

Individuals

* 2002 Pan-American Cup "Most Valuable Player" * 2002 World Championship "Best Scorer" * 2003 NORCECA Championship "Most Valuable Player" * 2004 FIVB World Grand Prix "Best Spiker" * 2005 Pan-American Cup "Best Spiker" * 2004-2005 Russian Super League "Most Valuable Player"

Clubs

* 1998

CEV Cup The CEV Cup is the second tier official competition for men's Volleyball clubs of Europe. The competition takes place every year. Until 2000, it was the CEV Cup Winners' Cup. In 2000 it was renamed to CEV Top Teams Cup and in 2007 to CEV Cup. T ...

–

Runner-up, with Medinex Reggio Calabria * 1999 Italian Cup – Gorm silver cup

Runner-up, with Medinex Reggio Calabria * 1998-99 Italian Championship – Gorm silver cup

Runner-up, with Medinex Reggio Calabria * 1999-00 Italian Championship – Gorm silver cup

Runner-up, with Medinex Reggio Calabria * 2000 Italian Cup – Coccarda Coppa Italia

Champion, with Medinex Reggio Calabria * 2000 Italian Super Cup – Simple cup icon

Champion, with Medinex Reggio Calabria * 2000

–

Champion, with Medinex Reggio Calabria * 2004-05 Russian Super League – Simple cup icon

Champion, with Uralochka-NTMK

References

External links

*
Uralochka-NTMK profile
(archived)

(archived)
Yumilka Ruiz on the battle for volleyball gold at Sydney
(interview) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruiz, Yumilka 1978 births Living people Cuban women's volleyball players Volleyball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Volleyball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Volleyball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics Volleyball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for Cuba Olympic bronze medalists for Cuba Olympic volleyball players for Cuba Olympic medalists in volleyball Volleyball players at the 2003 Pan American Games Volleyball players at the 2007 Pan American Games Pan American Games silver medalists for Cuba Pan American Games gold medalists for Cuba Volleyball players from Havana Cuban International Olympic Committee members Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Pan American Games gold medalists in volleyball Pan American Games silver medalists in volleyball Central American and Caribbean Games silver medalists for Cuba Competitors at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games Outside hitters Cuban expatriate sportspeople in Russia Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in volleyball Cuban expatriate volleyball players in Italy Expatriate volleyball players in Russia Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2007 Pan American Games Sportspeople from Camagüey 21st-century Cuban sportswomen 20th-century Cuban sportswomen Competitors at the 1994 Goodwill Games