Tamara Henderson (@tambrooke) Tips from the best in the world.
Carli Lloyd (@clloyd)2016 Olympic Indoor Volleyball Team, Setter (Bronze Medal), 2016 World Grand Prix Silver Medallist, 2015 Pan American Games Gold Medallist, 2015 Pan American Cup Gold Medallist (Awarded MVP and Best Setter)
"Oh man! The next generation. I would say, “Hard work is always the answer.” It’s never anyone else’s fault, so if you’re feeling like you’re not where you want to be, or that things aren’t going the way you want them to go, take responsibility for where you are, and then make the sport better by bringing your best self. Volleyball is a wonderful sport, and it’s a changing sport and a growing sport all the time. It’s awesome to be in it and just embrace the challenges and take responsibility for where you are."
Annett Davis (@adavis)Olympian, Professional Beach Volleyball; Queen of the Beach Title, World Champion 4-Person Volleyball, 4-time top-10 hitting percentage on AVP; Pac-12 Player of Year; AVP Awards: Best Server ('02), Role Model Award ('03), Special Achievement ('02) and Best Offensive Player ('00). Mother of 2 athletes.
"Have fun. I always like to tell people, “Have fun, and remember, it’s just a sport.” If I lost a game today, if I lost a big event, even if I didn’t make the Olympics the second time, it’s a game. For me, my relationships with my family, with my friends, those are the things that are important. Those are the things that are going to last. If I put the time and effort into them, and not into just this game, the rest of my life is going to be awesome and wonderful. The game of volleyball is something that is awesome, it’s fun, but you’re not going to be playing at a high level for your entire lifetime. Always, just be positive, be a positive light. No one likes a teammate with a bad attitude, and no one likes a player who complains, and to be quite honest…refs don’t like them either. Just be positive and have fun."
Dain Blanton (@dainger)2-time Olympian & Gold Medallist - Beach Volleyball, NCAA Champion & All-American @ Pepperdine Univ., AVP Best Offensive Player Award, AVP record holder for 11 aces in one game to 15, All-State Basketball player who led Laguna Beach to CIF Final.
"If you work hard and you commit to putting in the extra time to reach your potential then you can make a career as a volleyball player whether it’s on the beach or whether it’s playing professionally, or overseas. Volleyball has taken me all over the planet - to six of the seven continents in the world. I never imagined that when I was younger. I would be lying if I ever said it was because of talent and it wasn’t because of a lot of hard work. There was a ton of hard work and a bunch of lost matches, but it’s all worth it in the end. If you’re competitive and love the volleyball environment go after your goals with everything you have. If one of your goals is to represent your country, just go for it. Whether you make it or not you’re going to learn a ton from the journey and make some amazing friends. If you so make it to that level, I’ll tell you first hand, there is nothing else like it."
Nick Becker (@NBecker)Olympic Volleyball Player (Bronze Medallist), 2-time NCAA Champion, University of Southern California, Principal & Owner - Becker Capital Partners, Inc.
"Develop yourself as human beings first, do well in school, and compete like crazy. Play volleyball because you want to play, not because you’re being forced to play. Be passionate about it if you enjoy doing it. Be passionate about it and be a great teammate, be a great team player. Read a lot because I think if you read a lot it’ll help you become a great player and it’ll also help you in school, but … If you’re passionate about it, go after it and compete and I’d say for sure do well in school, I mean that’s first and foremost. Give perspective, it’s not the end of the world if you’re not playing on every team 12 months out of the year. I’d tell them to play other sports as well. Without a doubt. I’d say hey, be a great teammate. Well first of all do it because you want to do it and you love to do it. Be a great teammate, do well in school, play other sports, be well rounded. That’s probably what I’d pass along to them."
Scott Fortune (@SFortune)3-Time Olympian & Gold Medallist - Volleyball, 2-Time All-American @ Stanford, US Olympic Committee's Male Volleyball Athlete of the Year, Spent 4 years on the 4-Man Pro-Beach Tour. Former Pro-Beach Offensive Player of the Year. Outdoor enthusiast, adventurer.
"Have fun. You see every winning team has a great chemistry because they’re having fun together. I was fortunate enough to play on a lot of amazing teams, including a team that won an Olympic Gold medal. Surprisingly they didn’t always have the best athletes, but we did have amazing team chemistry. Another piece of advice would be to not take sports too seriously. It’s a sport. Enjoy those moments. You get a great spike. Celebrate and have fun. I think that’s the most important part and what kept me in the sport for so long. I didn’t beat myself up like a lot of other players do when they made a few mistakes. "
Antzela Dempi
(@adempi)UC Berkeley Women's Volleyball; Outside Hitter; MVP and Best Hitter on Greece Club Team; U18 Greece National Champion; Voted Best Hitter in Greece following Junior National Championship
"The biggest thing is to always try your hardest and know that things are not going to go perfectly or the way you want them right away. Whenever you try something new, you might be frustrated because it’s not working out for you, but just keep going and trying hard. No one is perfect and that’s why you practice every day, so that you can get better. Stay committed throughout the whole process and never give up."