Last season, Brad Gunter was playing professional volleyball in a high-end league in Poland. This year, the Comox Valley native will be playing in a 12-team league in Bulgaria.
鈥淭he level is going to go down a bit,鈥� Gunter, 24, said during a recent visit to the Valley. 鈥淚 was the second player in my position (right side hitter) in Poland. I鈥檓 dropping down a couple steps in league quality, so I鈥檒l be the first player and get to play lots, and hopefully do well.鈥�
In Poland, he had played for the Trefl Gdansk Lions in the Plusliga, one of the top volleyball leagues in the world.
鈥淲e came third, and we won the Polish Cup, which was about halfway through the season. It was really good. Super high-end league.鈥�
Gunter also plays with Canada鈥檚 senior A team, which finished eighth at the 2018 FIVB Volleyball Nations League this summer in France. Russia won the competition.
鈥淭hat was a pretty awesome experience, too. We travelled all over. We we fairly successful. Didn鈥檛 quite make top six, which was what we were going for, but overall it was a good experience. Got to play against a lot of good players.鈥�
A graduate of Vanier Secondary, the 6鈥�6鈥� Gunter was a star player at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops. He was named CIS Player of the Year in 2014, and graduated as Canada West鈥檚 all-time points leader.
His new home is in Pazardzhik, Bulgaria, about an hour from the capital city of Sofia. The season runs from the end of October to the end of April.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a full-time job,鈥� Gunter said of professional volleyball. 鈥淚 might go to the gym for a few hours a day, but it takes the whole day. You eat healthy, you gotta鈥� do mental checks, make sure you鈥檙e ready for the next competition. You鈥檙e always thinking about it. You don鈥檛 just go home and shut off. Volleyball is your life.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a real worthwhile profession,鈥� he added. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a rewarding lifestyle. If you can get there, it鈥檚 worth it. I wouldn鈥檛 trade it for anything else. I wouldn鈥檛 want to be doing anything else right now.鈥�
reporter@comoxvalleyrecord.com
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