In 2018 the pair secured three gold medals and six podium placements, which took them to the top of the FIVB World Ranking. But the following year, they had to settle for just three bronze medals and a 17th position at some of the most important tournaments on the calendar, including the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships, the Vienna Major and the FIVB World Tour Finals.
“Brandie and I have developed and gained a lot of experience together over the past four years,” Bansley reflected. “We have had moments proving that we can be one of the top teams in the world, but have also struggled with consistency. We are using this training period to help us prepare for whenever tournaments resume. Brandie and I are approaching this extra time as an opportunity to be even better and more prepared for the Olympics than we were at the start of the year, as sort of a reset. We still have a lot of room to improve and I am confident that Rico will help us grow and push us to where we want to be in time for us to achieve our Olympic goals.”
With the 2021 FIVB World Tour calendar still to be released and uncertainty concerning international travel expected to continue, the Canadians have decided to remain in Brazil until December, where they hope they can play on the country’s national tour or at least practice with some of the top Brazilian teams.
Future trips to Rio are not off the table either.
“I believe Rico’s experiences and successes as an Olympic coach with a medal will be extremely valuable to us. He knows how to successfully prepare for the Olympics both physically and mentally,” Bansley, a three-time FIVB World Tour Best Defensive Player added. “Because of travel restrictions, Rico is not able to come to Toronto, so we have committed to training in Rio. We are committed to doing everything we need to be the best we can in Tokyo, and if that means spending most of our preseason in Rio or outside of Canada, we are prepared to do that.”