Kaleo Kanahele
Home: Oklahoma City, Okla.
Birthday: June 11, 1996
Height: 5-5
Weight: 120 pounds
Hometown: Oklahoma City, Okla.
Middle School: Summit Middle School
PERSONAL: Born Kaleo Okalani Kanahele on June 11, 1996 in Oklahoma City, Okla. … Parents are Iubile and Charla Dye-Kanahele… Kaleo has a brother named Johnathan Wong and a sister name Kau’i… Kaleo was born with a left clubfoot. The day after she was born, they started casting it into shape. The cast was changed every two weeks until she was nine months old. At this time it was decided to have reconstructive surgery where they would perform a tenotomy and put pins through the toe and heel to set the heel bone in place. Her toes turn inward, her foot will always be shorter and wider than the other, a small calf muscle, and she has limited flexibility… Kaleo has played volleyball since she was nine years old. At age 10 she started playing for Oklahoma Peak Performance 12s team in 2007, in 2008 the team took 42nd in the USA Volleyball Junior National Championships and in 2009 the team took 18th. Her school volleyball team at Edmond Summit Middle School took second in both 2008 and 2009… Kaleo has played basketball since age 7, she now plays AAU basketball for Oklahoma Lady Magic who went to Tennessee in 2009 for AAU Division I Nationals Championship and placed 19th. Her middle school basketball team, Summit Middle School – Lady Eagles, went 40-0 for a middle school record, they were Regional Champions in 2009-2010… Kaleo has also played softball since she was 8; she was a first baseman for Oklahoma Reign who in 2009 took 2nd at the NAFA 12 and under Nationals… Kaleo also likes to read, listen to music and eat… She has never let her disability slow her down. Kaleo says to “work hard, go for your dreams and don’t ever believe anyone that says you can’t do it.”
MAJOR INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION: 2011- Parapan American Zonal Championship in Sao Paulo, Brazil (gold)... Kaleo competed with the U.S. Women's Sitting Team in China in four exhibition matches against the Shanghai club team... 2010 - Helped the U.S. Women's Sitting Team in winning silver at the Sitting Volleyball World Championships in Oklahoma... Kaleo was a contributor on the U.S. Women’s Sitting Team that won gold at the Parapan American Championship (Colorado).
INTERNATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS: 2011- Kaleo was named best setter at the 2011 Parapan American ZOnal Championships where the team won gold. 2010 – Kaleo was the youngest player on the team, age 14, to compete for the U.S. at the Sitting Volleyball World Championships. She appeared in seven sets over the course of the Tournament and tallied one kill, 0.14 per set, and five service aces, 0.71 per set.
