The first weekend of the 2014 Volleyball BC Provincial Championships finished on Sunday, and we had an amazing three days of volleyball. With the first steps into the Tradex facility, attendees were immersed into the largest volleyball venue in BC, and the 10 metre long draw board emphasized just how many teams were there for the competition.
There was no shortage of clothing or gear for the event, and the Canuck Volleyball booth was constantly busy with excited players and parents snatching up the favourite colours.
On the other side of the building Sports Action Pictures was displaying all the photos from the event, while PowerPlant Whole Foods was handing out samples of their all natural bars. At the Athletes in Action booth there was a $200 Instagram photo contest for their volleyball camps, and the Darrin Moreira booth was giving demonstrations on how to train for bigger jumps and harder spikes.
Volleyball BC staff manned the World League booth handing out flyers for the June 13th and 14th event and telling people about this rare chance to see the national team athletes up close without having to fly to Rio for the Olympics.
The 13/14U teams had a great banner contest for this event and the creativity and teamwork really showed through in the final works of art. The winning banner even lit up! To kick off the event on Friday we handed out the Most Inspirational Player Awards and it was great to hear the teams cheer on the award winners.
Did I mention the volleyball action? Starting on Friday at 2pm and running until 6:30pm on Sunday there was non-stop volleyball on all 18 courts at the Tradex and at two other off site facilities. By Saturday we had started the first round of medal matches and our feature court games were even broadcast live online! 13/14U girls finished up on Saturday, and on Sunday the 17/18U girls and boys and 14U boys were competing to get to the medal rounds.
Our final gold medal matches on the feature court displayed some of the best action we’ve seen all year with athletes laying it all on the line for their teams. In the final men’s gold medal match one spike/dig actually hit the ceiling of the Tradex, a rare occurrence and a reminder of the powerful spikes these young players can produce.
As players, coaches, and parents left the Tradex we saw lots of smiles and some very tired kids, but the feedback was excellent, and we at Volleyball BC are so excited to be able to host this event each year.
The action continues next weekend with the 15U/16U boys and girls ready to again fill the Tradex with the sounds and sights of competitive club volleyball. Make sure to follow us on social media for updates and you can also watch medal matches from our feature court live on sportscanada.tv/volleyballbc
Below are a couple of pictures from the past weekend, but if you’re looking for that shot of your best spike, make sure to contact Sports Action Pictures.
If you missed the action and want to see some video from the event, we’ve posted some footage from each day on YouTube –