Pakmen Beach Players to Represent Canada

As the sport of volleyball’s popularity rises throughout the globe, its official governing body, the FIVB, continues to add more age groups to the junior competitions. This coming year the FIVB will host four youth competitions across the globe, including championships in the u-17, u-19, u-21, and u-23 divisions for both males and females. Pakmen is pleased to announce that Canada has chosen to send our athletes to compete in 3 of the 4 tournaments! This Summer Parvir Jhajj, Sharone Vernon-Evans, Craig Ireland, Zach Albert, and Chris Towe will take their talents South and compete against elite beach volleyball players from across the world. In addition, Pakmen Coach Jessy Satti will also be traveling with the U17 team as they compete.

Jhajj and Vernon-Evans are the defending Canadian National Champions currently competing for the under-16 teams under Head Coach Ed Turalinski. As a duo, the pair have dominated on the beach, and are currently the defending under-15 Ontario Beach Champions Their indoor team placed first nationally last year and is currently ranked first place in Ontario.This will be the teams first international competition. They will be competing in Bahia de Banderas, Mexico. Both players train under Pakmen coaches Jessy Satti and Phil Rodriguez.

Under-17 player Zach Albert is no stranger to international competition. Last summer, he and former partner Andrew Kos placed first at the Beach High Performance Championships (HPC) in Hermosa Beach, California. Making them the first Canadian team to do so. In July, Albert and Ireland will travel to Porto Portugal, for the FIVB Under-19 World Championships. Both athletes have trained under Pakmen coaches Jessy Satti and Phil Rodriguez, and now train with Volleyball Canada.

Chris Towe is a standout on our under-18 mens team. He will be competing in Lanarka , Cyprus with partner Sergey Grabovsky. Currently a student at the University of Waterloo, Grabovsky competed for the Aurora Storm Volleyball Club in high school and now focuses solely on beach volleyball. Towe has been training for indoor under Head Coach Philip Rodriguez and on the Beach under former German National Team Head Coach Lennard Krapp.

This is the first time Pakmen has sent five different athletes to compete on an international level. Former Pakmen players who have competed internationally include National Team members Daniel Dearing and Terrel Bramwell. We are sure that for Jhajj, Vernon-Evans, Albert, and Ireland, this is the first of many international competitions they will compete in as Pakmen athletes. Congratulationss boys! Pakmen is proud of each and every one of you!