On September 2, Volleyball Canada's National Excellence Program (NEP) started for men in Gatineau, Quebec. Mount Royal University's Luis Lange was selected to join this elite training group.
NEP is designed to prepare athletes to perform at the highest level of their sport and to continue their development towards the national senior team and playing professional volleyball.
"The NEP has restarted with a targeted group of athletes, which includes national team members as well as invited university or younger athletes," said NEP Head Coach Dan Lewis. "After a modified training season and the cancellation of most competitions due to the pandemic, we are excited to get back into the gym with this talented group of players."
One of these talented players is decorated Cougars' student-athlete, Luis Lange. In the 2018-19 season, the third-year middle blocker was named Mount Royal Rookie of the Year and to the Canada West and U SPORTS All-rookie Teams. This is Lange's second experience with Volleyball Canada as he previously played on the Canadian Junior National Team that competed in the Federation Internationale de Volleyball's (FIVB) Continental Championships in Cuba in 2018.
For the fall semester, Lange is still completing Mount Royal classes while training in Gatineau.
"We currently practice twice a day with a workout on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and train once on Tuesday and Thursday. To keep up with my academics, I don't attend the Monday and Wednesday morning practices as I'm in online lectures," said Lange.
Mount Royal's men's volleyball head coach Shawn Sky is also excited about the experience Lange will have this fall.
"It's an incredible opportunity for him. He's learning from and competing against some older athletes that are more experienced and very physical. A great example being Lucas Van Berkel. He's a 28-year-old, 6'9" middle who is a member of our senior national team. Lucas is at a level Luis is aspiring to be at one day," said Sky. "He's going to be exposed to a lot. Not just what he learns on the court, but the mindset required to compete each day at that level."
Meanwhile back on Kenyon Court, the Cougars have started training Monday through Friday as a team.
"Obviously everyone is facing challenges from this pandemic. There are a few silver linings. You can tell everyone appreciates being able to train and compete," said Sky. "Overall we are off to a great start. I'm impressed with our guys' focus and energy. They are all eager to be there each day. Luis is a key member of this team so when he returns I imagine there will be even more energy and the level of play will go up a notch."
Lange also looks to increase the high performance culture of the young and exciting MRU men's team.
"I hope to bring a lot more technical knowledge so we can further the level at Mount Royal but also the intensity and the dedication for the sport to raise the level of not only current Cougars student-athletes but future ones too." added Lange.
NEP will run to December at the Centre sportif de Gatineau, with the possibility of extension depending on several factors, including local health guidelines.
A full roster of NEP athletes is available online on the Volleyball Canada website.
