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Haneef, Tayyiba
- Member of U.S. National Team
- Member of undefeated ’98 NCAA Championship team (Long Beach St.)
- NCAA All-American in volleyball and track & field
- Played at Long Beach State, where she was the tallest player in 49er volleyball history.
- Member of the '98 team that went 36-0 en route to the NCAA national title.
- Also an NCAA All-American in high jump – Said her volleyball coach Brian Gimmillaro "Tayyiba's got great character ... and anytime you compete in more than one thing you have to work harder. You have to be willing to give twice as much."
- Placed tenth in the 2000 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trial, posting a 5'10.75'' jump.
- Graduated from LBSU with a degree in speech communications in the spring of 2001, and is working toward her Master's degree.
- Elected to play collegiate volleyball despite receiving scholarship offers for basketball.
Haneef dreams of winning Olympic gold in volleyball, something that keeps her going according to her former college coach Brian Gimmillaro. “She has dreams, and I like dreams to keep going--not go away," he said.
On what advice she would give others planning on competing in more than one sport: "I believe that as long as you want to do it, and your heart is willing to put forth the effort, anything is possible. A lot of people told me I would never be a good volleyball player or high jumper because I never specialized. But I always knew that I could, believed I could, so I didn't listen to what they said. I just followed my heart and did it."
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Height: 6' 7"
Born: 23-Mar-79
Hometown: Laguna Hills, Calif.
Sport: Volleyball
Position: OPP
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