She played middle blocker for the United States women's national volleyball team at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.

[1] Oden played volleyball for Stanford University as a middle blocker and was named the 1990 NCAA Player of the Year.

[6] Oden's sisters, Kim and Elaina, were also Olympians who played on the United States national volleyball team.

[3] Oden made the news in 2007 when she was held in custody by Orange County sheriff deputies near her hometown of Irvine, California in relation to a reported incident.

[7] She was found to have no connection with the incident in question, and her ordeal prompted local community leaders to form the Oden Commission to hold discussions on racial profiling between residents and law enforcement.