Australian outside hitter Sam Flowerday is in his last year at TRU. From debuting as a rookie in the 2021-22 season to accumulating more than 1,000 kills throughout his career, it’s been a long journey. Recently, the Omega spoke with Flowerday about culture shock, his career goals and a unique trip to Istanbul.
Omega: Take us through your journey from Australia to Kamloops.
SF: When I was in Australia, I was in a national excellence program. It’s called the Center of Excellence and then got renamed to the Australian Volleyball Academy. So, when I was coming to the end of my time there, my coach asked me if I wanted to play pro or university. I [chose university because] I knew a lot of Australian guys went through Canada West. My coach reached out to Pat [Hennelly]. Pat came back to me and then just went from there.
Omega: What was the biggest cultural shock?
SF: Just the weather, it’s super cold. Then, hearing the [Canadian] accent for the first time was a bit weird. Overall, it’s pretty similar to Australia. Honestly, everyone’s super nice [in Canada] and [it’s similar back home]. But the weather accent is a bit different.
Omega: Congratulations on surpassing the 1,000 career kills milestone. What does that mean to you personally and professionally?
SF: I think it’s just something there that I can look back and think, “Yeah, I achieved that. It’s pretty cool. Not many people get to do that.” I think it’s just a milestone for me to look back on to show how it worked out.
Omega: What was the most memorable moment from the last four years?
SF: Just meeting the guys and then the first win in the 2021-22 season. It was the first time we went down to play UBCO. We didn’t have a good start but then brought it back to a win in five. That was pretty good.
Omega: What was the most valuable lesson that the program has taught you?
SF: I think it teaches you how to be a good player. How you carry yourself [on the court follows] you into real life. It [the athletic program] doesn’t just build good volleyball players but also builds good people. So I think just carrying the attributes you get from playing competitive sports over to real life.
Omega: You went to Istanbul during the winter break. How did you like that?
SF: It was really good. We did a lot of sightseeing; we went to the Blue Mosque, cistern and underground system. Just walking all over Istanbul was super nice. It was awesome to see the different cultures. We also watched a couple sports games, like a soccer game and a basketball game. The crowd was crazy, and the fans were insane. Yeah, just walking around the market and seeing everything.
Omega: What do you think you’ve improved about yourself since joining the ‘Pack?
SF: I think just the ability to do things on my own, like living at home and then across on the other side of the world, has been isolating sometimes. So learning to be on my own a bit and [about being] self-sustaining.
Omega: What are your plans after graduation?
SF: To play pro somewhere in Europe. I’m talking to a couple of teams and agents right now. So, hopefully, I’ll lock something in over there. I just continue to play volleyball for a while to get as good as I can.