Wink Davenport

Winthrop "Wink" Davenport Jr. (born April 12, 1942) is an American former lead volleyball official, former college basketball player, former National team volleyball player. He is best remembered as the most prominent volleyball official in the United States, arising from his frequent service as a volleyball referee officiating the nation's most important matches. He is a holder of U.S.A. Volleyball's 1996 Wilbur H. Peck Referee – Emeritus Award.[1]

Wink Davenport
Personal information
Full nameWinthrop Davenport Jr.
NationalityAmerican
Born (1942-04-12) April 12, 1942
Santa Monica, California, U.S.
HometownBinghamton, New York, U.S.
Height6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Weight220 lb (100 kg; 15 st 10 lb)
Career
Teams
Westside Junior College
National team
United States
Medal record
Men's volleyball
Representing the  United States
Pan American Games
1967 Winnipeg Team

Davenport grew up in Binghamton, New York.[2] He was awarded a scholarship to play basketball at Wesleyan, where he had a distinguished college career. United Press International named him first-team small college all-New England.[3] He was captain of the basketball team his senior year.[3] He left Wesleyan holding the school record for most points scored in a game (44) and for career scoring average (19.6).[3] In addition to basketball, Davenport lettered twice as a member of the Wesleyan golf team.[3]

In the late 1950s Davenport became active playing AAU volleyball at a YMCA in his hometown of Binghamton, New York.[3] In 1966 he moved to Santa Monica, California, where he joined the Santa Monica Volleyball club team. The team was one of the top amateur teams in the nation, and competed at the USVBA Open Nationals. Following the tournament Davenport was selected for the US National Men's Volleyball Team. He competed at the 1967 Pan American Games, where the team won the gold medal. In 1968 he played on the National Team when it competed at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City.[4] The following year, he was again selected to play on the National team at the 1969 World Cup.[5] In 1971 Davenport captained Santa Monica's USVBA club team, which won the USVBA National Championship in the Men's Open Division. He earned All-America honors at the tournament.[2][3] Davenport remained a member of the US National team through 1971.[5]

Davenport retired from playing competitively at the end of 1971 due to chronic knee problems. However his involvement in the game continued as an official.[5] In this capacity he made his largest contribution to the sport. Davenport earned his national certification in 1971, and soon was considered one of the nation's top officials.[6] He officiated at the USA Cup, the World Junior Championships, the World Championships, the World Cup and the Olympics.[3] Davenport officiated at 11 NCAA Men's National Collegiate Volleyball Championships and six NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championships from 1980 through 1990.[3] He also officiated at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.[7] Davenport served as a Board member of the U.S. Volleyball Association from 1971 through 1977, and served as vice president of the USVBA from 1973 through 1976.[3] He was the secretary of the international referees committee of Fédération Internationale de Volleyball from 1992 through 1996.[7] Davenport retired as an active official in 1995, and has continued on in emeritus status since 1996.[6] Davenport was referee delegate to the Olympic games held in Atlanta in 1996.[3]

Davenport is married and has three children. He met his wife, Ann, on the volleyball courts in Southern California.[2] She became president of the Southern California Volleyball Association.[7] His oldest two daughters, Leiann and Shannon, both went to college on volleyball scholarships, Leiann at UC Irvine and Shannon at St. Mary's College.[7] Davenport's youngest daughter, Lindsay, became a tennis player, winning the 1996 Olympic gold medal and three Grand Slam singles titles: the US Open (1998), Wimbledon (1999), and the Australian Open (2000).[5]

In 1996 Davenport was selected for U.S.A. Volleyball's Wilbur H. Peck Referee – Emeritus Award.[1] He was inducted into the Wesleyan Hall of Fame in 2009.[3]

References
  1. "Wilbur H. "Wil" Peck Referee – Emeritus Award". USA Volleyball. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
  2. Jares, Joe (17 May 1971). "First stop for the U.S. on the road to Havana: Santa Monica YMCA won the U.S. title in Binghamton, N.Y. and may send as many as six men to Cuba for the Olympic elimination round". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
  3. "WINTHROP "WINK" DAVENPORT '64". Wesleyan University. Wesleyan University. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
  4. "History of U.S. teams in men's volleyball Olympic tournament". Off The Block. Retrieved 7 April 2017.
  5. "Wink Davenport". Sports-Reference: Olympic Sports. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
  6. "Retired and Emeritus National Referees" (PDF). USA Volleyball. 9 February 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
  7. Crowe, Jerry (20 February 1994). "Davenport Earning Her Degree as Pro: Murrieta Valley High senior is knocking on the door of top 10 as she readies for Evert Cup". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
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