Former UCLA men’s volleyball player Jeff Nygaard has been
to the Olympics twice before ““ in 1996 and in 2000 when he
was part of the United States men’s indoor team. But at this
summer’s 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece, things will be
quite different for the former four-time All-American middle
blocker.
Leaving the safety net of a cast of teammates and coaches
behind, Nygaard has teamed up with Dain Blanton and will try to
capture the gold medal on the beach.
“The difference of competing on a two-man team is that I
have a much more intimate relationship with what’s going on
and planning things because I’m not surrounded by a
team,” Nygaard said. “It’s more first hand for
me. It’s a nice thing considering I’ve been to two
Olympics.”
Nygaard, who has been a volunteer assistant coach for the UCLA
men’s volleyball team for the past three seasons, discussed
his mid-August trip to Greece with the caveat that he and the
former Pepperdine standout Blanton have not technically qualified
for the Olympics yet.
But it is almost a foregone conclusion.
The United States will send two two-man beach teams to Athens,
and since Jan. 1, 2003, teams have been playing in Olympic
qualification tournaments for the right to go.
Teams are awarded points for victories and placing in
tournaments, with their top eight performances counting towards
their point total.
The Blanton-Nygaard team leads the pack with 2,188 points. The
second place team of Todd Rogers and Sean Scott has 1,624 points.
In third place is the team of Stein Metzger and Dax Holdren with
1,512 points.
It is very unlikely that Blanton and Nygaard will slip down to
third place by the July 11 qualifying deadline.
“As it is right now we are operating on assumptions that
we will make it,” Nygaard said. “But going into this
month we know we have to play well. It’s not out of reach for
other teams. Chances are if I was a betting man, I’d say
we’d go.”
Nygaard and Blanton raced out to an early lead after playing
very well in 2003.
The team won the first tournament of the season and played
consistently throughout the year, picking up the majority of their
qualifying points.
But this year the duo has not fared as well, and looks to
re-assert its dominance before heading to Athens.
Nygaard and Blanton are certainly a formidable duo. Blanton is a
star defensive player and has the necessary experience, as he won
the gold medal on the beach with partner Eric Fonoimoana at the
2000 Olympics in Australia. The 6-foot-8 Nygaard offers superior
blocking abilities.
“Certainly Jeff’s blocking has put him ahead of the
pack for a long time,” said John Speraw, a former teammate of
Nygaard’s at UCLA and current UC Irvine men’s
volleyball coach.
“The reduction of court size has really mandated that you
need to have a big blocker to be successful, and I think Jeff
brings that to that team.”
Nygaard played middle blocker on the past two United States
indoor Olympic teams, and UCLA men’s volleyball coach Al
Scates called Nygaard the country’s best blocker.
“He’s always been a good digger and a setter,”
Scates said.
“And he has real good hands ““ that’s rare for
a middle. Being a taller middle who has the coordination to pass
and set, Jeff gives trouble to opposing teams.”
When Nygaard isn’t playing on the Association of
Volleyball Professionals’ tour or coaching at UCLA, he can be
found selling paint at Home Depot.
Home Depot is a major sponsor of the United States’
Olympic efforts and gives athletes an opportunity to work to earn a
bit of money to fall back on as they pursue their Olympic
dreams.
Nygaard has worked at the Home Depot in Marina del Rey for four
years and enjoys his experience in the paint department.
The athletes are paid for 40 hours of work, and Home Depot asks
that athletes log 20 hours of work per week, although the company
is flexible and understanding of the athletes’ commitments to
their sports.
“I love it,” Nygaard said. “Sometimes it gets
frustrating because the monotony of telling people how to paint a
wall gets to you. It’s so different from my average day when
I’m on the sand every morning. When I go to Home Depot,
it’s a great chance to meet people.
“One girl I work with, she tells every customer,
“˜This is Jeff, our Olympic athlete!'”
Here at UCLA, people can say the same thing about him.