Coming Back for More : Timmons Pursuing Third Volleyball Gold Medal

Steve Timmons was emotionally and physically spent after playing a major role in leading the U.S. men’s volleyball team to a second consecutive gold medal in the 1988 Olympics at Seoul.

He laughed when asked during an appearance on “Late Night With David Letterman” if he planned to be in Barcelona for the 1992 Games.

“Not unless they have wheelchair volleyball,” he said.

Timmons easily could have come up with 10 reasons to stay home.

“I had reached the pinnacle and, physically, I was kind of burned out at that point,” he said last month. “All the pressure was on us to win, and going through two weeks like that (during the Olympics) was pretty difficult.”

And 1992 seemed so far away.

But the closer it got, the more Timmons thought that maybe he shouldn’t dismiss a possible third and final gold rush so readily.

Although he and teammate Karch Kiraly, cornerstones of the ’84 and ’88 U.S. Olympic teams, had retired from the national program in 1989, they signed in 1990 to play professionally in Italy into 1991.

Then, after leading their Italian team to a league title in 1991, they signed to play into the spring of 1992, reportedly for $1 million each.

Suddenly, the Barcelona Games seemed a little less distant.

Pursued by U.S. Coach Fred Sturm and encouraged by his wife, Jeannie Buss, daughter of Laker and Forum owner Jerry Buss, Timmons happily returned to the U.S. team last April, hoping to make history.

No volleyball player has won three Olympic gold medals.

Timmons, at 33 the oldest U.S. player, would like to be the first.

“For me, it was an easy decision,” said Timmons, whose only disappointment was that Kiraly did not return. “I said, ‘This is a great chance, a great opportunity, and I’m going to take it.’

“I don’t want to look back and say, ‘I should have done that, I was really playing great.’ If I would have done that, I would have killed myself. I’m giving it my shot. Maybe I’ll disappoint myself, or our team won’t play as well, but I’ll be able to say, ‘I gave it a shot.’

“If I was at home watching the gold-medal match, I’d be saying, ‘What would be the difference if I’d been there? I should have been there.’

“Now, I won’t have to think about those questions.”

The return of Timmons, along with ’88 veterans Jeff Stork and Bob Ctvrtlik, who also returned in April, greatly improves the U.S. team’s chances of successfully defending its Olympic title. Without them, the U.S. finished 13th in the World Championships two years ago.

A 6-foot-5 hitter, Timmons was selected most valuable player at the ’84 Olympics and best blocker at the ’88 Games.

What sets him apart?

“I guess it’s a combination of his strength, quickness, jumping ability and timing,” Kiraly said. “He can hit the ball so hard that, even if you get a good bead on it, you can’t control it as a defender.

“And he’s able to do it from anywhere on the court. I’ve never seen another hitter who could do it front row, back row, left side, right side, quick sets, high sets. He’s the guy you go to when you need a point. It doesn’t matter if the whole gym knows it, including the six guys on the other side of the net, he’s going to put the ball away.

“He’s certainly the best hitter that I’ve ever seen.”

Timmons’ physical gifts are almost limitless, Sturm suggested.

“He’s got a great arm swing and a lot of range,” Sturm said. “He’s got great broad-jumping skills, which make him a strong back-row hitter. He’s very explosive. He can get to the ball faster than most players in the world. He can beat the block before it’s set up.”

That, along with his experience and knowledge, Sturm said, makes Timmons invaluable to a U.S. team that will be challenged in Barcelona by strong teams from Italy, Cuba, the Netherlands and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Sturm, who became coach of the U.S. team 18 months ago, began his pursuit of Olympic veterans almost from the day he was hired.

Timmons, of course, was pursued with tremendous zeal.

He was not a hard sell.

His wife had already laid a foundation for Sturm’s pitch.

“You don’t want to retire too soon,” she said. “It’s not something you can go back to. As far as our relationship, I didn’t want to start having children as long as he was going to be playing, so I said, ‘Look, we won’t start a family. I want you to play as long as you want to play.’ So, from that point of view, I kind of pushed him into playing.”

But he was already leaning.

“Volleyball is important to me, especially this team,” Timmons said. “I’ve always felt this team was . . . not my team, but I had a lot to do with its success and its identity. And even though I hadn’t played on the team for a few years, I still felt like it was something I helped create. I still felt like it was something I belonged to.”

Ironically, if an injury to another player hadn’t provided an unexpected opportunity for Timmons early in 1984, the former USC All-American might never have played in the Olympics.

“Even (a few months) before the Olympics, it wasn’t looking good that he was going to make it,” Kiraly said. “We all thought he had great potential, physically and mentally, but he wasn’t getting the chance that he needed. He wasn’t getting enough court time to prove himself.”

But because a teammate was injured, he got it during a tournament at Havana, where his play stood out.

“Dusty (Dvorak) started setting him a lot out of the back row, and all of a sudden we discovered what a great back-row hitter he was, and what a great hitter and blocker in general,” Kiraly said.

“Pretty much in those two weeks, he assured himself a spot on the team and in the starting lineup. And he just kept going from there.”

Timmons helped the United States dominate the sport in the 1980s. In addition to Olympic titles in ’84 and ‘88, the United States won the World Cup in ’85 and the World Championship in ’86. While recovering from a knee injury in 1985, Timmons started a successful beachwear company. His carrot-colored coif, swept high on his head, made him the team’s most recognizable player.

Now he’s the elder statesman, but the fire still burns.

He showed that in April during his first week back from Italy.

“I just wanted to work on my game, and I wasn’t really getting into it mentally,” Timmons said of his first days back. “And, physically, it was tough, too. I was moving a little slow, so I was questioning my ability. And, mentally, I was questioning, ‘Do I want to do it?’

“But then, I don’t know who it was, but somebody dug me and he screamed really loudly, trying to show me up or something. After that, I told Jeff (Stork) to set me every time and I tried to show this guy, ‘You just don’t do that.’ And then I clicked in mentally and physically after that.”

It was as if he’d never left.