The day may have been April Fool’s but Team USA wasn’t playing a joke on Alan Knipe.
The 40-year-old Long Beach State alum and men’s volleyball head coach will take a three-year leave of absence to coach the USA Men’s Volleyball program through the 2012 London Olympics.
“It is an incredible honor to have the chance to represent my country and USA Volleyball” Knipe said in a press release. “I would like to thank Doug Beal [Chief Executive Officer of USA Volleyball], this wouldn’t be possible without his support and confidence. I am very fortunate to work at Long Beach State and I cannot thank President [F. King] Alexander, Vic Cegles, Cindy Masner and Mark Edrington enough for their support over the years and especially during these past few weeks. To accept a job like this you have to have the support of your family and my wife [Jennifer] has been amazing throughout this entire process.”
Knipe, who signed a contract with USA Volleyball on Monday, will make the move at the end of the 2009 season with the 49ers. He plans to return by fall 2012 to coach the 49ers in the 2013 season.
“This would never be a reality if I didn’t know I could come back to the program that I have great affection for at the end of my USA contract,” Knipe said. “The program is in a really good situation and will continue to compete at the highest level. It has a solid group of veterans coming back with a nice mix of underclassmen. The staff has also put together a nice recruiting class.”
An interim head coach has yet to be named.
“I feel good about the direction the coaching staff will go and there will be a lot of continuity while I’m with the national team. John Hawks, Andy Read, and John Crutchfield are very important to the program’s success and they will all be staying with the program,” Knipe added. “Vic [Cegles] and I have spoken at length regarding the hiring of the right interim coach, and I am very confident that the guys will have a great interim head coach and it is my hope that it can be announced real soon.”
The 1992 graduate adds to the 49er party on Team USA, which won the gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics with the help of former LBSU standouts Tom Hoff, David Lee and Scott Touzinsky.
The ninth-year head coach has experience on the international level, leading the USA Men’s National Team to a gold medal at the 2008 Pan American Cup in Winnepeg, Canada. Knipe also guided the 2007 USA World University Games team to a bronze medal in Bangkok, Thailand and twice coached the USA Youth National Team.
“Alan has been a great asset to the university,” said Cegles, the athletics director. “All of us in the 49er family are proud to have him represent the United States as the national volleyball team coach. We wish him the best in his pursuit of the gold and look forward to his return. Until then, we are confident that we will be able to find a talented caretaker for the program and maintain the 49er winning tradition until Alan returns in the fall of 2012.”
Since 1999, Knipe has been the head coach and director of the USA Volleyball Development Camp. As a player, Knipe competed on the National Team in 1992 and 1993.