NAME: Mirka Lindberg
UNIVERSITY: Alberta
CATEGORY: Student-Athlete
SPORT: Women’s volleyball
YEARS ACTIVE: 1993-1998 (student-athlete); 2003-2008 (coach)
HIGHLIGHTS:
Four-time national champ with Alberta (1995, 1996, 1997, 1998)
Three-time CW Player of the Year (1996, 1997, 1998)
Two-time CIAU Player of the Year (1996, 1997)
1995 CIAU championship tournament MVP
BIOGRAPHY:
Originally from the Czech Republic, Mirka Lindberg (née Pribylova) came to Canada in 1992 and soon began a stellar student-athlete career at the University of Alberta.
From 1993 to 1998, Lindberg was the starting setter for Alberta's women’s volleyball team, helping the Pandas capture four straight CIAU championships (1995, 1996, 1997, 1998) and three Canada West titles in a row (1995, 1996, 1997), while being named the CIAU Player of the Year twice (1996, 1997), and the Canada West MVP three times (1996, 1997, 1998).
Lindberg became the first University of Alberta female varsity student-athlete to make the All-Canadian First Team on four occasions, earning that honour in 1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998. She was also named a Canada West First Team All-Star in all four of those seasons.
An offensive dynamo, Lindberg excelled on the biggest stage, winning MVP of the 1995 CIAU championship, and being named a tournament all-star at nationals each year from 1996 through 1998. In 1996 Lindberg was awarded the Bakewell Trophy as the University of Alberta’s most outstanding female athlete.
After concluding her Pandas career, Lindberg played professional volleyball in Europe and was a member of the Canadian national team from 1998 to 2002. She represented Canada at the 2002 World Volleyball Championships in Germany.
Lindberg went on to serve as an assistant coach with University of Calgary women’s volleyball team, with whom she won the national championship in 2004. She is a member of the University of Alberta Sports Wall of Fame (class of 2013).