Triple Crown Volleyball has benefited from many relationships found in the youth club orbit, where fellow passionate supporters of the sport have joined forces to build some of the most compelling events on the calendar.
Beginning in 2022, the West Coast Invitational has been a dynamic summertime solution for teams as they either prepare for the grind of USAV or AAU national championships or look for a fresh way to cap their season. Triple Crown is pleased to welcome back Athena Volleyball Club to the 2025 WCI, as the Portland-based program is sending 11 teams to Sandy, UT., just outside Salt Lake City for the tournament.
We visited with Remi Pourrat, director, recruiting coordinator and lead coach, to learn more about the culture and priorities that have driven success and growth for Athena. This is the first of two stories on their accomplishments and their mission.
Q: What are some of the baked-in priorities of Athena that incoming parents and prospective players need to understand?
A: ATHENAVB was founded to offer a space for athletes to feel safe, build community and become the best version of themselves. 25 years later, this mission hasn't changed. We are bigger than ever in terms of teams, athletes, college commits, and coaches, and yet, the number one priority remains our athletes and their well-being. We give access to all our athletes to elite training – we have multiple former or current college coaches, former high-level players, teachers, a professional coach, and we provide mandatory training for our 90+ coaches on techniques, tactics, but mostly on how to manage athletes, playing time, conversations and how to treat our kids properly.
We also focus on recruiting assistance (we had 26 college commits this season), strength and conditioning, and mental training. They have the whole package when we talk about volleyball, but at the end of the day that isn't most important. We recently had our senior celebrations. We have a lot of traditions at ATHENAVB and AJAXVB to celebrate and honor all the athletes that graduate from our programs. During all those events, not a single word is talking about performance or results. The center of attention is always the amazing people our seniors are, how they carry themselves and the examples that they are for younger generations. Our seniors are the flag bearers of our values, and we are so proud to have them part of our family. To summarize, our No. 1 priority is that we are taking care of our people, always.
Q: How do you integrate volleyball into a young child’s life, like age 11, and how do you work to preserve their physical and mental well-being as they move through adolescence?
A: The first word that comes in my mind is with fun. We work very hard to have our kids enjoy their time in our gym. We want them to come to practice excited to see their people, to have fun, and learn. At ATHENAVB we are all competitors, we love to work hard and compete, and we try to transmit that mindset to our kids while teaching them to handle the inevitable mistakes and losses that will happen in volleyball. Volleyball offers the unique opportunity to constantly fail and get immediately another chance to try again.
Resilience is one of the best life skills we can teach to our kids. We've built a safe place for them to make errors, to struggle, to be vulnerable. We support them, hold their hands when needed, push them and make sure that they are having fun failing. Because at the end of the day, we are PLAYING volleyball, it's just a game.
Q: It’s been 25 years for Athena – can you share some of the big lessons that were learned on the way that allowed you all to thrive?
A: The constant confirmation that standing for our values is what makes us who we are and creates this success. This community is what makes us and why this club thrives. We attract athletes and families that identify with what we stand for. Who we are is literally written on the walls of our gym, and all our coaches are models of those beliefs and standards. Sometimes, some people aren't good fits for our culture and they naturally look for other communities. We don't compromise for any individuals; we have standards and anyone part of this organization has to meet them.
(Stay tuned for MORE from AthenaVB!)
