His own dream was killed but Nathan Bennett wants to help volleyball players in Prince George reach their potential.
A knee injury during a professional game in Europe last winter ended Bennett's Olympic dreams but he has now refocused his goals to help other young volleyball players fulfill their own dreams.
Bennett is now a coach with the Impact Volleyball Camp (IVC). The IVC program will be in Prince George for its third year, Aug. 20-24, to give 24 players in Grades 7-12 an opportunity to learn from professionals who have played in Europe.
"They'll get a lot of playing time and work on their skills but what we also like to offer is the fact that all the coaches are professional, or national team, athletes," said Bennett. "So they're going to bring their experience from Europe and their different styles of coaching that they've been involved with that aren't necessarily known yet here.
"There are all sorts of different ways that people are taught or teach it's not just the normal Canadian university way," he added. "We're bringing in a different idea."
The camp is open to boys and girls and will be held at the College of New Caledonia between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Bennett said there's still lots of space for players to sign up at www.impactvolleyballcamp.com, clicking Prince George under the registration link.
The two coaches scheduled to run the Prince George camp are Ellen Orchard, from Texas, who spent five years playing professional in Switzerland and Emmy Blouin, a native of St. Albert, Alta., who has played in Austria and Sweden. Both women also played college volleyball at NCAA schools.
"This is a really good opportunity for the girls to be able to pick the brains of two former NCAA players about the experience," said Bennett.
The IVC camp was started by Ryan Pomeroy and Daniel Kurylo who met while playing volleyball at Grande Prairie College in 1998. In 2004 they found themselves on the same pro team in Portugal and the concept for IVC was developed. The idea is to bring coaches with pro or national team experience to smaller communities in Northern Alberta and British Columbia.
In 2004, camps were held in the Alberta towns of Athabasca, Grande Prairie and Peace River. Prince George was added three years ago. Other communities IVC stops in are Chetwynd and in Alberta Barrhead, Westlock and Vermillion.
Bennett said if Prince George players fill all 24 spots he may join Orchard and Blouin but if the entries remain light he believes the two women can handle things.
The former University of Alberta Golden Bears middle blocker is still recovering from surgery after he ruptured his patella tendon in his left knee during a game in Finland in March. The injury ended Bennett's quest to play for Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London.
"For me it was a no-brainer to try and be involved with that," said Bennett, who holds a British passport because his father was born in England. "I was a walk-on. It was perfect."
During his five-year career with the Golden Bears, the native of Athabasca, was the final cut from the Team Canada men's volleyball team three years in a row. When it was announced London would host the 2012 Games, Bennett realized his Olympic dream may still have life.
"My whole plan for my whole career was the Olympics and then I'm going to retire," said Bennett. "So [retirement] just happened sooner than I thought."
