Quick Facts
- Born: Kyle Elton Russell (1993) in Sacramento, Calif
- Parents are Craig Russell, Lisa Russell-Artale and Christopher Artale
- Has three older sisters: Jamie Russell (1991), who was a middle hitter at the University of Alaska, Anchorage, Meghann Palazzo (1989) and Kate Jongsma (1991)
- “I admire my parents for always being there for me and supporting me in everything I do. I admire my sister Jamie for being a great friend, mentor and the reason I started playing volleyball.”
Career Highlights
- Junior World Championships, 2013 (Team - Men)
More
Kyle wanted to quit volleyball the first two weeks he started playing.
“Growing up, I was forced to go to my sister’s volleyball tournaments, and one day her coach approached me asking if I’d like to try out for a boy’s club team. I did, and for first two weeks of practice I didn’t like it and wanted to quit. Then, one day everything just clicked, and I found I excelled at playing and really fell in love with the sport. I always thought I would play basketball in college; however, after playing both Basketball and volleyball in high school, I decided my true love was volleyball and that that’s what I wanted to do in college. I owe my love for volleyball to my sister.”
World Championships Experience
- Most recent: 2022 – 6th (Team - Men)
- Years of participation: Team - Men 2022
- Top finish: 6th – 2022 (Team - Men)