October update

After a deliciously large turkey dinner at Thanksgiving, we only had a couple of days to recover before having to perform the best we could at the National Team tryouts and physical testing. Along with ball control and skill testing, we had to hop hurdles, throw med balls, run an agility course and do the yo-yo test, among other tests.

All this went down at our Full-time Training Centre at Downsview Park.

Jamie and I then had a week at home to train for our upcoming tournament in Thailand, the last stop of the year on the world tour. We trained with the other Canadian team that would be traveling, Vee and Sophie, since everyone else had decided to start their break a little early.

Thailand is always one of my favourite stops on tour. Instead of being held in Phuket like the last couple of years, this FIVB took place in Bang Saen, a town just one hour outside of Bangkok.

Since the timing is kind of weird for this event (it's almost a month after the previous event) and especially because it's an Olympic year, a lot of the usual teams decided not to come to this tournament, and Jamie and I took advantage of this situation. We'd accumulated enough points this season that we were the top-ranked team in the qualifier. And because so few teams showed up, we got a bye into the Main Draw, which was pretty awesome. On qualification day, we went to cheer on Vee and Sophie. It was pouring rain on the day of their game, and unfortunately they could not pull out a win against Norway. 

A view of the venue

We played the next day, and the weather had cleared up by then so it was sunny and hot. Our first game in the Main Draw was against a team from the Netherlands. We took the match in 3 sets (19-21, 21-19, 15-12). It was really exciting to win such a tight game! We played a decent game, staying aggressive and attacking whenever we could, but there are definitely still things to work on. The win was so exciting because it meant we were guaranteed to at least match our best ever result at an FIVB. Such a great feeling!

Next we played Brazil, a familiar opponent, as we had just played them in Finland a few weeks ago. This time around we played much better, almost taking the first set, and probably catching them off-guard. We lost in 2 (20-22, 11-21) but felt like we had improved since our last match against them.

Finally, we played Vanuatu. This is a team that we have gotten to know through training sessions at many FIVB events throughout the year. I personally had a bad game that day, I'm not sure if it was the heat, fatigue or just an off-day for me. I was really disappointed with the loss (15-21, 15-21) because I know this is a team we are capable of beating, but I will just have to keep training hard and wait until our next match up to prove it! That loss took us out of the tournament with a 17th place finish, the same as in Finland and one that I am proud of, but believe we can continue to improve!

I was lucky enough to have my parents come to this tournament and cheer us on. It was their first time attending an FIVB and I think they had a pretty good time!

This bad boy was lent to my parents by the owner of their hotel. Yes, it has flames. And yes, it is called the Phantom.

After the tournament, my parents and I planned to travel to an island called Koh Samui together. We arrived in the morning, rented motorbikes (for a daily rate of $5 each!) and toured around in search of a place to stay for the night. I'd say we found a pretty awesome spot. I still can't get over how beautiful Thailand can be! 

$65/night goes a long way in Thailand! We had our own villa by the beach.

 Later that day, we swam in the ocean, hiked up a trail to check out a waterfall and started to head up a mountain to take in a sweet view of the island. Unfortunately, my mom had an accident and crashed her bike on the way up the mountain. The rest of the day was spent in 2 hospitals getting stitches and x-rays. Turns out she broke her humerus bone. She spent her first night on the island in the hospital, a huge bummer! However, armed with her recently purchased new iPad from a shopping day in Bangkok, she was a trooper and managed to return to the hotel in a cast and sling so she could enjoy the last couple days on the beach as intended.

After a few days on the island, my parents flew home and I stayed with my good friend Heather in Bangkok, just as I did last year. This was such a great way to end my trip. I got to do some Bangkok essentials before I left (you know... thai massage, mani, pedi, another massage, shopping, etc). I am so grateful to both Heather and her boyfriend Greg for letting me share their space! Thank you for being such wonderful hosts, it was such a treat to be able to spend time with you!

I have to say, I really didn't want to come home. When I arrived, the weather was cold and rainy and brutal! The one good thing about coming home though was that I got to hang out with my brother for a day. It was one of those rare times when we're both at home. He came to get me from the airport, and he next day I dropped him off there for his flight to Sweden. But in between we got to hang out and get caught up in each others' lives. Just as my beach season ends, his ski season picks up! The timing is pretty funny.

Now that I'm home, I've had a week to rest before training starts up again. Still feeling some of the effects of jet lag too. My roommate thinks I'm crazy, unable to keep my eyes open past 9pm and waking up at 6:30 every day. Oh well, I guess I'm a morning person now!

Happy Thanksgiving Canada!

Autumn is definitely the best season of the year (even if it's a little too cold to keep hanging out and training on Canadian beaches)! This thanksgiving weekend, like every year, I headed up north to our cottage with my family. 

Just look at the colour of the trees! And this is just the beginning....

So when it's 7 degrees outside and you're about to put the boat away for the winter, 

what better to do than go for one last wake surf ride of the year!

Gangnam Style!!

Oh yeah. That was awesome. Next up, turkey dinner! That is the best part of the weekend, after all. 

Looking forward to stuffing my face with delicious food.

Gobble Gobble!

San Diego NORCECA

On the second day of our tournament we beat Guatemala in our last game of pool play. Later that day we took on Trinidad & Tobago in the quarters to make top 4 in the tournament.

San Diego was experiencing a heat wave this weekend, so each day was hotter than the last. It didn't help that most of our games were played in the middle of the day either! 

On the final day, we were matched up with another US team in our semi final. They got off to strong start both sets and we couldn't manage to hold a lead against them. We lost in 2 sets and had to face Mexico in the bronze final. We started off great, dominating the first set, but then the momentum shifted and we ended up losing in 3. SO disappointing!

On a happier note, the Canadian men did great! Ben and Chaim won the tournament while our second team of Mike and Cam took the bronze. They both beat American teams in the finals. Way to go boys!

We managed to do some sightseeing before heading home. The day after the tournament, Mike, Cam, my mom and I decided to hit up the World Famous San Diego Zoo. We wandered around for hours, it was a really great time! We also managed to squeeze in a quick visit to the beach on Coronado Island. I hope I get to come back to San Diego, this has been a pretty fun trip! 

My mom, so pumped to be at the beach! Coronado Island, CA.

I love Vancouver. 
 

...so it's no surprise that I came back! We decided to have a week of training out west before our next tournament; a NORCECA down in San Diego. The weather has continued to be sunny and clear in Van since I left at the end of August. We've trained almost everyday (sometimes twice!) with Chris Densmore, an awesome coach that has helped us out so much. 

  
On our day off, we decided to hike The Chief in Squamish. Such an incredible view! (You just can't get this in Toronto!)

Always up for a training session!

Kits Beach was pretty quiet this week, now that summer is winding down, so it felt like we had the place to ourselves. The week of intense training was much needed. I think it successfully set us up for the NORCECA.







We're in California now and loving it! We played our first pool play match against a US team yesterday (W 21-11, 21-14) and we have two games today. The venue is pretty incredible, it's an Olympic Training Centre for many different sports and it has housing and food and laundry on site. Not to mention a sweet athlete lounge with pool tables, xbox, computers and board games. Our moms also decided to come down and watch the tournament, so we have a cheering section too!
Our next game is against Guatemala this afternoon. Let's keep it rolling!

The awesome venue in Chula Vista, CA.

Fast and Female

Chandra Crawford - 2006 Olympic Gold Medallist, Cross-Country Skiing

I am happy to announce that I have partnered up with a fantastic organization called Fast and Female! It's a non-profit organization that works to inspire and motivate girls aged 9-19 to stay hooked on sports and lead a healthy lifestyle. Fast and Female was started by my friend Chandra Crawford and offers programs and events for girls to participate in all over Canada. It is so important for girls to gain confidence and leadership skills to help them reach their full potential. I am honoured to be named an ambassador!!

Check out the website for more information!

Finland FIVB

I just got back from the FIVB event in Aland, Finland. This was a trip full of excitement from the start. On the day I was scheduled to depart from Toronto, I had the honour of being a bridesmaid in my cousin's wedding. Unfortunately, I had to leave the party a little early to catch my flight and make it to the tournament on time. (The wedding was awesome by the way. The bride was gorgeous and everything was so perfect!) 

So my flight left at 11:20pm for London. Luckily, I was upgraded to first class (thank you Aeroplan!) so I feel asleep right away, for pretty much the whole trip. It was only after landing in London that I found out our flight was delayed 2 hours and I missed my connection to Stockholm, where Jamie was waiting for me. The next flight left 5 hours later, so I had some time to kill (you may have noticed the blog layout has changed a little.. yay boredom!). I eventually made it to Stockholm, rolling into our hotel room at about 1am. The next morning, we caught the ferry to Aland. Why this tournament is on an island is beyond me. The town is very quaint, just tough to get to!

Anyway, we did our best to adjust to the time change and the weather, which was freezing compared to what we'd been used to this summer. 

We only had one round of qualification to make it into the main draw. As usual, if we had lost, we'd be out of the tournament. But we managed to pull out a 3-set victory over Norway and earned our way into the main draw for the first time as a team. This was a pretty exciting moment for me too, because it was my first main draw appearance ever. 

The next morning we were pretty pumped to play our first match, which was against the top Swiss team, ranked third in the tournament. It was definitely a learning experience! We lost 21-13, 21-16, but managed to do some good things. I think our nerves got the best of us and we could have performed better, but it was very cool to play such a dynamic team. Main Draw is set up in Double Elimination format, so our loss put us in the loser's bracket and if we lost our next game, we were out. As it turned out, we were matched up against fellow Canadians Heather and Liz! It's always a shame when two teams from the same country have to play each other, especially when one team gets knocked out of the tournament. Sometimes the draw can just be unlucky like that. Well, we had just played these guys at Nationals, so we were looking for revenge this time around. It was a good battle and we managed to take the win 21-19, 21-16. We were so pumped because this meant we were able to stay alive for another day in the main draw.

The next morning, we faced a team from Brazil. It was tough to get our rhythm going because this was a very strong team. They beat us 21-16, 21-12 and eliminated us from the tournament with a 17th place finish.

I think I could have played better if it wasn't for an accident that happened the morning of our first Main Draw match. An hour before game time, I banged my foot pretty hard on a ledge. It was bleeding quite a lot, so I went to the medical room and got them to tape it up for me so I could play. After our 2 matches, I went back to get the tape removed and get it cleaned up a little. It was a pretty gnarly gash. They took a closer look at the cut and told me I should probably go to the hospital. Turns out, I got 6 stitches in my baby toe! I felt the pain from the stitches even more than the injury itself, so playing on it the next day was pretty brutal. But, I have a rad souvenir from my first main draw! This is definitely a tournament I won't forget. 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank an organization who has helped me to get where I am today. The Estonian Foundation of Canada offers scholarships to students and athletes of Estonian descent, and I am honoured to be selected for the scholarship this year. The basic funding we get through our sport federation is not enough to cover all of my expenses, so this has helped us pay for flights 
to important tournaments so I can compete in the sport 
I love and ultimately reach my goal of competing in the 
2016 Olympics.

Nationals 2012 - Bronze Medal

I am extremely proud of my Estonian heritage. Although I was born in Canada, I feel a strong connection to this tiny country, especially through my grandparents who were born there. Some of my relatives are still in Estonia, but many of them also live in Toronto, where the Canadian-Estonian community is quite strong. I attended Estonian night school as a kid so I am able to speak, read and write the language. It's important to me to stay connected to my roots, so it means a lot to me when I am recognized and supported by organizations like the Estonian Foundation of Canada.
Suur tänu!

2012 Nationals

Here's a breakdown of what went down on the weekend of August 17-19.
Friday August 17 - Day 1
We had only 1 game on the first day of the tournament. We were matched up against Mel and Taylor, a team we have seen quite a bit of this summer. They beat us in the finals at the Vancouver Open, and we beat them in the finals at Centre of Gravity in Kelowna. Needless to say, it was a bit of a grudge match to settle our 1-1 standing with them. Jamie and I started playing aggressively, attacking whenever we could and really going after our serves. We're proud of the way we played, and it won us the match, 21-14, 21-16.
Saturday August 18 - Day 2
Next we faced last year's national champs, Kacie and Julie, our good friends and a team that also competes on the World Tour. We fought hard but couldn't manage to beat them. They took us in 3 sets, 18-21, 25-23, 12-15. This put Jamie and I in the loser's bracket of the Double Elimination set up. We played another game, essentially our second chance at a quarter final, and our ticket to the Semis on Sunday. We played the scrappy team of Jackie and Tori. I think we unleashed some of our pent-up frustration from the previous match, and we took this match 21-12, 21-9.

Cold morning game. (photo: Blair Shier)

Sunday August 19 - Day 3
We faced the top ranked team of the tournament in our semi. Heather and Liz won nationals in 2010 and have been working their way up the rankings on the World Tour ever since. Jamie and I are disappointed with our performance against them. It was definitely not our best game, and it's a shame we had to play so poorly at that point in the tournament. We lost 21-12, 21-13... which meant we were out of the running for claiming the National Championship title for this year. That was a tough realization, but we had to move on from it and focus on the bronze medal game coming up. As it turned out, Mel and Taylor worked their way through the loser's bracket and earned their way into the semis, taking on Kacie and Julie. They played great and won in 2 sets (28-26, 21-17). This meant we would play Kacie and Julie for bronze. It was such a battle!! It was clear that both teams wanted a spot on the podium. We won the first set 21-19, then they came back to win the second set 21-17. The third set was intense. At one point Jamie and I were down 3-8 but we fought hard and managed to come back for the win, 17-15!! We were thrilled, and exhausted, and glad the tournament had finally come to an end.

Bronze!

I sincerely want to thank everyone who has supported us this year, and especially those who came out to cheer us on. In particular, my parents, Austin, Julie, Blair, Amy, Mike, Nadia, Kat, Karlee and Sam. It means so much to see you in the crowds and hear you guys losing your voices for us. THANKS!!
I also want to mention that this was Julie's last tournament as a National Team athlete. She has made the decision to take her life in a new direction. She will be seriously missed in the beach volleyball community. It was such a pleasure to get to know her over the past three years. There are few athletes who have such a great positive and competitive attitude. I totally admire her as an athlete and I'm honoured to call her a friend! Best of luck Julie, may you be successful in whatever you choose to do!

We had the loudest fans. You guys are the best!

 Thanks for the pictures Wayne!!

Centre of Gravity CHAMPS!

We're pumped to be holding up another giant cheque!! We went undefeated this tournament, which made it extra sweet. Now we're setting our sights on Nationals at Spanish Banks. This is the last domestic tournament of the year, and it's a big one. It's a 3-day tournament in double-elimination format. We play our first game today at 3pm against old friends, Mel and Taylor. I sense another battle... and we're ready for it!!

Vancouver, Victoria, Kelowna

After getting back from Korea, we had a couple of days to adjust back to Vancouver time. We spent a lovely day stand-up paddling boarding along English Bay with Mila, enjoyed some delicious, familiar food that we missed in Korea and watched the start of the Olympics!  

Dandelion coffee. Who knew?!

My friend and UofT teammate Elodie at opening ceremonies!

Shortly after that, we competed in BC Provincials July 28&29. We had a blast playing under a sunny sky at Kits, and ended up winning the tournament! Many thanks to our cheering squad, Kat and Karlee! 

Karlee, Kat and me with our celebratory Caesars :)

Passed by nude cyclists on my way home.... awesome.

 We decided to take a little break after Provincials, so Jamie took me to her hometown Victoria, on Vancouver Island. It was my first time taking the ferry over to the island, and I have to say, it was really beautiful. I wish I had more time to explore!! I have a really good feeling I'll b back there some day soon!

A few sights from the trip to Victoria... sigh 

Now we're in Kelowna, gearing up for what is probably the most fun tournament of the year. It's part of Centre of Gravity, a multisport festival with music acts and parties all weekend long.  Some of the top teams from Canada will be here to the competition will be tough!! Jamie and I are ready for anything, so bring it on!!