WINNIPEG — The national women’s volleyball team is being pulled out of Winnipeg after calling the city home for 24 years.
Volleyball Manitoba confirmed the departure via a statement Monday afternoon. The organization calls the move disappointing and says it will hurt athlete development in the province.
“With the team being based here, there has been so much opportunity for an elevated exposure of our sport to the community,” said Volleyball Manitoba executive director John Blacher in a news release. “Our local coaches have had a chance to observe and attend international matches and participate in team training. Our referees have experienced similar benefits through officiating the game at its highest level. The national team athletes have also always been great role models, encouraging and motivating our next generations of athletes in Manitoba.”
The team will be relocated to Richmond, BC following the 2016 season. A formal announcement will be made by Volleyball Canada tomorrow.
Since arriving in Winnipeg in 1992, the national women’s team appeared in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, four Pan Am Games, three World Grand Prix tournaments and three world championships. Canada’s best finish was third at the 1995 Pan Am Games in Mar del Plata, Argentina.
Winnipeg also hosted the men’s national team for 12 years until it left for Gatineau, Quebec in 2008.