Mr. Speaker, after a 24-year absence from the Olympic Games, the Canadian men's volleyball team has qualified for Rio. At the final qualifying tournament in Japan, Canada beat China three games to two. In fact, the men won the fifth set 15 to 9. It should be noted that the Canadian team rallied, from down three games to one, to win the last two games.
The Canadian team is led by Gavin Schmitt from Saskatoon. He scored 23 points in the come-from-behind win over China. Schmitt is a remarkable athlete. He is six foot 10. However, what makes this story even more remarkable is that Schmitt suffered a stress fracture in January and had to go through surgery. After a quick recovery, five months later he is on the court to lead Team Canada in the qualifying tournament.
The volleyball team will head to Saskatoon later this month, but today it is a celebration for head coach Glenn Hoag and the rest of the men's Olympic-bound volleyball team.