Kiraly Is No. 1 Despite Being 42

The wheel of parity kept spinning Sunday, and it finally landed on a familiar name.

In one of the most unpredictable seasons in AVP Tour history, Karch Kiraly, who will be 43 in November, became the oldest player to win an AVP Tour tournament.

Kiraly and partner Brent Doble are the seventh team to win in seven AVP tournaments this season. They beat Sean Scott and Todd Rogers, 21-16, 21-16, at the Nissan Series Huntington Beach Open.

Kiraly, the career leader with 144 tournament titles, broke his record for the oldest player to win an AVP tournament; he and Doble won at Santa Barbara in June of last year.

“I really feel like I’ve been able to turn back the clock this year,” Kiraly said. “That’s not easy to do once you’re 40. It can be done, though.”

Kiraly wanted this title. Usually a steady, stoic player, Kiraly was emotional and outspoken throughout the tournament, including a lengthy tirade after an official’s call in a quarterfinal victory over Eric Fonoimoana and Kevin Wong.

The frustration level had been high: Kiraly and Doble had been close in several tournaments this season.

“This is a very hard-earned victory in terms of what we’ve been through,” Kiraly said. “We’ve lost some heartbreaking matches to teams that went on to win.”

Kiraly and Doble served every time but twice to Scott, who struggled after aggravating his chronically sensitive back in the semifinals. Scott had 14 hitting errors and no blocks. Doble had nine blocks.

“I think if Sean had been 100%, the outcome would have been different,” Rogers said. “He’ll be fine two weeks from now, but that doesn’t help us with this one.”

Kiraly’s victory didn’t help him decide whether to try for next year’s Athens Olympics. The only three-time gold medalist in Olympic volleyball history hasn’t played in any of the seven Olympic-qualifying tournaments so far this season.

A tournament at the Home Depot Center in Carson next month will be worth at least double the normal points in the arduous, 14-month qualifying process.

“We’ll play in Carson and see how that goes,” Kiraly said.

“If it were to go well, we’d think about grinding through and playing some international events.”

Until then, Kiraly is the oldest player to win an AVP tournament

“He’s broken every mold in volleyball,” Rogers said. “Now he’s breaking molds in sports in general because of the age thing.”

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The final was not televised live because NBC was concerned it would exceed the 90-minute allotment for its time slot.

Before Sunday, all six men’s finals this season went the maximum three games, including one that went 88 minutes.

It has not been decided whether NBC will televise the Chicago Open men’s final Aug. 31 live or on tape delay, AVP Commissioner Leonard Armato said.