Heather Nicole Erickson

Started: She began playing sitting volleyball at age 13. (teamusa.org, 26 Dec 2013) Ambition: To compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (Instagram profile, 14 May 2023) Milestones: She is the youngest US women's volleyball player to have won a Paralympic medal to date, having claimed silver at the 2008 Games at age 15 years and 131 days. (SportsDeskOnline, 01 Jul 2024) Awards: In 2019 she was named Best Attacker at the World Super 6 event in Tokyo, Japan. (volleyballmag.com, 22 Nov 2019) She was named Most Valuable Player [MVP] and Best Spiker at the 2019 Parapan American Games in Lima, Peru. (teamusa.org, 22 Nov 2019) In 2013, 2016, and 2018 she was named Sitting Women's Player of the Year by USA Volleyball. (teamusa.org, 22 Nov 2019, 04 Jul 2019, 03 Jul 2014) In 2017 she was named MVP and Best Spiker at the World Super 6 event in Hangzhou, People's Republic of China. (teamusa.org, 22 Nov 2019) In 2016 she was a member of the US national sitting volleyball team that was named the Paralympic Team of the Year by the United States Olympic Committee [USOC]. (teamusa.org, 01 Jan 2016) She was named Best Receiver and Most Valuable Player [MVP] at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (teamusa.org, 01 Jan 2016) In 2014 she was named Best Hitter at the World Championships in Elblag, Poland. (paravolley.pl, 03 Jul 2014) Additional Info: COACH She has served as head coach of the OP2-Oklahoma Peak Performance Volleyball Club in the United States of America. She coaches the female U11 team. "I love that I can go compete on the sitting team and be that gold medal team, and fight, fight, fight. And then I get to watch where everything begins. I see that progression, and it makes me enjoy the sport a lot more." (Facebook profile, 24 Nov 2023; usavolleyball.org, 11 Nov 2022) LEADER She was selected to captain the US national sitting volleyball team at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. She previously captained the team at the 2014 World Championships in Elblag, Poland. (teamusa.org, 22 Jun 2016; paravolley.pl, 09 Jun 2014) FURTHER EDUCATION She also has a degree in technical management from DeVry University in the United States of America. (usavolleyball.org, 11 Nov 2022)