Thaísa Menezes

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Daher and the second or paternal family name is de Menezes.
Thaísa Menezes
Personal information
Full nameThaísa Daher de Menezes
Born (1987-05-15) 15 May 1987 (age 37)
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Height1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)
Spike318 cm (125 in)
Block308 cm (121 in)
Volleyball information
PositionMiddle blocker
Current clubBrazil Minas Tênis Clube
Number6
National team
2005–2018, 2023-2024Brazil Brazil
Honours
Women's volleyball
Representing  Brazil
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2008 Beijing Team
Gold medal – first place 2012 London Team
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris Team
World Championship
Silver medal – second place 2010 Japan Team
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Italy Team
World Cup
Silver medal – second place 2007 Japan Team
World Grand Champions Cup
Silver medal – second place 2009 Japan Team
Gold medal – first place 2013 Japan Team
World Grand Prix
Gold medal – first place 2005 Sendai Team
Gold medal – first place 2006 Reggio Calabria Team
Gold medal – first place 2008 Yokohama Team
Gold medal – first place 2014 Tokyo Team
Gold medal – first place 2016 Bangkok Team
Silver medal – second place 2010 Ningbo Team
Silver medal – second place 2012 Ningbo Team
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place 2011 Guadalajara Team
Silver medal – second place 2007 Rio de Janeiro Team
Pan-American Cup
Gold medal – first place 2009 Miami
Gold medal – first place 2011 Ciudad Juárez
South American Championship
Gold medal – first place 2007 Santiago
Gold medal – first place 2009 Porto Alegre
Gold medal – first place 2011 Callao
Gold medal – first place 2013 Ica
Gold medal – first place 2023 Recife

Thaísa Daher de Menezes (Portuguese pronunciation: [taˈizɐ daˈɛʁ dʒi meˈnezis]; born 15 May 1987) is a Brazilian professional volleyball player. She won back-to-back gold medals at the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics. She has won numerous Best Spiker and Best Blocker Awards and is often singled out as one of the greatest Brazilian players of all time.[1]

Biography

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Thaísa was born in the Campo Grande district, located in the western part of Rio de Janeiro. Her father is a serviceman Domingos de Menezes and her mother Monica Daher is a descendant of immigrants from Lebanon. Until the age of 13, Thaísa was engaged in swimming, but then, following the example of her brother Tiago, she switched to volleyball.

A year later, she was accepted into the youth team of the Tizhuk club, where Julio Cugna, one of the best mentors for working with young athletes, became her coach. In 2002, Thaísa was invited to the Minas team (Belo Horizonte)- one of the strongest in Brazil, with which she won her first club level medal that same season, becoming the silver medalist of the Brazilian championship. In the same 2002 (at the age of 15), Thaísa made her debut in two teams of her country at once - youth and junior, becoming the champion of two championships of South America with them. A year later, the volleyball player became the world champion both among youth teams and among juniors.[2][3]

Career

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Menezes was part of the Brazilian team that won the gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics.[4]

Menezes won the silver medal with Sollys Osasco at the 2010 FIVB World Club Championship. She also earned the Best Spiker award.[5]

At the 2011 Pan-American Cup, Menezes was given the Best Blocker award,[6] and also won the gold medal with her national team.[7]

Menezes was part of the national team who won the gold medal at the 2011 Pan American Games held in Guadalajara, Mexico.[8]

In the 2012 FIVB World Grand Prix, Menezes won the silver medal with her national team and the individual award of Best Blocker.[9]

Menezes was part of the national team which won the gold medal at the 2012 Olympic Games held in London, UK.

Playing with Sollys Nestlé Osasco, Menezes won the gold medal and the Best Spiker award in the 2012 FIVB Club World Championship held in Doha, Qatar.[10]

Menezes claimed the silver medal in the 2014 FIVB Club World Championship, playing with Molico Osasco, when her team lost 0–3 to the Russian Dinamo Kazan the championship match. She was named among the championship Best Team as Best Middle Blocker.[11]

Menezes played with her national team,[12] winning the bronze at the 2014 World Championship[13] when her team defeated Italy 3–2 in the bronze medal match.[14]

Menezes retired from the national team in 2018. In 2023, she announced her return to the team and played in the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Women's Nations League as well as the Olympic qualifying tournament. She was part of Brazil's roster in the 2024 Paris Olympics. After winning bronze in the 2024 Olympics, she announced her retirement once again.

Clubs

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Awards

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Individual

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Clubs

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References

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  1. ^ ""This will be my last chance at WCH Gold"- Brazil's Thaisa". Volleymob.com. 29 September 2018.
  2. ^ UOL Olimpíadas - Thaísa
  3. ^ Pan 2007 - Thaisa
  4. ^ "Thaísa Bio, Stats, and Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 13 November 2016.
  5. ^ FIVB. "Fenerbahce crowned Women's Club World champions". Retrieved 21 December 2010.
  6. ^ NORCECA (9 July 2011). "Brazilian Sheilla Castro the MVP of the Pan Am Cup". Retrieved 9 July 2011.
  7. ^ Confederación Sudamericana de Voleibol (10 July 2011). "Copa Panamericana Femenina: Brasileñas son nuevas reinas" (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 July 2011.
  8. ^ FIVB (20 October 2011). "Brazil wins fourth Pan Am Games gold medal". Retrieved 20 October 2011.
  9. ^ FIVB (1 July 2012). "USA complete World Grand Prix title hat-trick". Retrieved 1 July 2012.
  10. ^ "Trentino Diatec and Sollys Nestle crowned in Doha". Doha, Qatar: FIVB. 19 October 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  11. ^ "Russia's Kazan capture Women's Club World championship in style". Zurich, Switzerland: FIVB. 11 May 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  12. ^ "Team Roster – Brazil". FIVB. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  13. ^ "USA win first World Championship title, China and Brazil complete the podium". Milan, Italy: FIVB. 12 October 2014. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  14. ^ Carneiro, Leandro (12 October 2014). "Brasil passa sufoco e quase toma virada, mas conquista bronze ante Itália". UOL (in Portuguese). Milan, Italy. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  15. ^ "Brazil win record 11th title in World Grand Prix". Fédération Internationale de Volleyball. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  16. ^ Globo (30 April 2022). "Macris é MVP, e Minas domina seleção da Superliga Feminina" (in Portuguese). Retrieved 7 May 2023.
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Thaísa Menezes.
Awards
Preceded by Best Spiker of
FIVB Club World Championship
2010
2012 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Best Server of
FIVB World Grand Prix
2011 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Best Blocker/Middle Blocker
FIVB World Grand Prix
2012
2013
ex aequo Serbia Milena Rašić
2016
ex aequo United States Rachael Adams 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Most Valuable Player of
FIVB World Grand Prix
2013 		Succeeded by
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