His full name is Gitaik Hong, but everyone on the Lobo volleyball team calls him “Hong”.
And while his nickname is short and quick, it undoubtedly belies the tall Hong — both in his considerable volleyball acumen and his considerable height.
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After a successful professional career in his native South Korea, Hong has made an early impact for the New Mexico volleyball team as a volunteer assistant coach, bringing a different perspective on the game that projects to help the Lobos as they continue to prepare for their 2016 season.
Hong joins a staff that features 10th-year head coach Jeff Nelson and assistant coaches JJ Glavan and Pauline Manser, and gives the program another defensive-minded coach who can assist the players.
“This year, my goal is to contribute to the team by emphasizing and bettering their defense as Coach Nelson requested previously,” Hong said. “If I am given an opportunity, I want to share everything I know in the game of volleyball.”
Which, to be fair, is quite a lot.
Hong’s first experience in volleyball came in high school, where a volleyball coach noted his height and had him play. He put in a year playing with CheongSuk High School in South Korea, and made his first national team at age 18 in 1980.
While playing for the National Junior Men’s Volleyball, Hong was part of the team that won first place in the Asia National Junior Championship.
He then went on to have a standout career as an outside hitter for Sung Kyun Kwan University, taking runner-up honors a number of times at the national championships and playing on the South Korean National University team in 1983 and 1985.
After graduating with his bachelor’s degree in public administration, Hong then went on to play for the South Korean National Senior Men’s Volleyball Team from 1985-87 and the LG Professional Volleyball Team from 1985-92.
Her was awarded MVP in 1985 and won third place for hitter and second place for blocker from 1984-89.
“I began my journey as a volleyball player in high school and my dream was to become a national player,” Hong said. “I am proud to say I gave volleyball my all and became a national player by the age of 24. I spent the majority of my young life playing volleyball and I truly enjoyed every moment of it.”
Hong then went on to coach the LG Professional Volleyball Team from 1995-99 before moving to New York.
Eventually, Hong made it to Albuquerque in 2011, when he started to coach with the Albuquerque Rebels Volleyball Club. Over the next few years, he also coached at Cibola High School, New Mexico Highlands University and with the New Mexico Juniors Volleyball Club.
“I came to the city of Albuquerque because of the strong passion people in this community have for the sport of volleyball,” Hong said.
And now, he’s with the Lobos, lending his years of experience to UNM’s current team.
Along with providing his unique insight, Hong has filled in as a hitter during drills, delivering blistering spikes during the Lobos’ preseason practices.
“It’s a little bit more of an aggressive training style with Hong,” Nelson said. “He’s got a really strong arm and anything that he’s hitting up the kids, I think the game will feel like slow-motion compared to what he’s doing.”
But whether it be hard shots or information tidbits, Hong just likes helping players improve, like that high school who saw a tall teenaged Hong back in South Korea.
“As a coach, being able to share my passion, years of experience and knowledge to young minds makes me very happy.”
Make sure you don’t miss a single Lobo volleyball match! Fans can purchase the 2016-17 Lobo Pride Pass for $50, which provides admission to every home volleyball match, plus all home women’s soccer, men’s soccer, softball, baseball and track & field events. For more information on all ticketing options for Lobo volleyball, fans can contact Lobo Athletic Ticket representatives Joe Gehling at (505) 925-1620 or Andrew Aho at (505) 925-5526 or visit the Lobo Ticket Office located in WisePies Arena.
Fans can follow @UNMVolley on Twitter and Instagram for information and updates on the team!