LOS ANGELES -- Kirk Kilgour, a three-time All-American volleyball player at UCLA and an Olympian, has died. He was 54.

Kilgour, who was left a quadriplegic after a 1970s training accident, died July 10 at Mediplex Rehabilitation Hospital in Thornton, Colo., after battling pneumonia and a series of illnesses that kept him in the hospital most of the year, said former UCLA volleyball coach Al Scates.

Kilgour rose to prominence in the early 1970s and was the first U.S. player to play professionally in Italy. He played on UCLA's first two NCAA championship teams in 1970 and 1971, and over three years led the Bruins to an 80-5 record. In 1972, he earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic team.

In 1976, during training with the Italian Professional Volleyball League, Kilgour bruised his spinal cord. Former Sen. Alan Cranston, D-Calif., was instrumental in getting Kilgour flown back to California for surgery, but he remained a quadriplegic for the rest of his life.

Despite the injury, Kilgour continued to work as a volleyball coach, sports broadcaster, actor, writer and disability consultant.

Born in Los Angeles, Kilgour played beach volleyball in his native Manhattan Beach and graduated from Mira Costa High School.

The 6-foot-5 Kilgour was one of the first big men with the coordination to play both defense and offense, Scates said.

"He would dive to the hardwood and come up quickly. He was just a tremendous athlete,'' he said.

Kilgour became the head volleyball coach at Pepperdine from 1979-81 and also was a sports broadcaster for major network and cable outlets. He was a color analyst and interviewer for Olympic volleyball telecasts in 1984, 1992 and 1996.

In 1984, Kilgour was voted a charter member of the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame, and joined Bruins legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, John Wooden and Gary Beban as the hall's first inductees. UCLA also honored him by creating the Kilgour Cup, a one-match benefit.

Kilgour is survived by a sister, Karen Sutter, of Saratoga, Calif.; his mother, Bonnie Kilgour, also of Saratoga; and his fiancee, Belinda Begley, of Thornton, Colo.