Sarah Pavan, a two-time Olympian who won multiple volleyball gold medals for Canada at world championships and Commonwealth Games, retired on Monday at age 38.
Pavan narrowly missed qualifying for the Paris Games this past summer in beach volleyball. "Volleyball has always been so much more than a sport to me.
It has been my social circle, my safe space, my classroom, my vehicle of self-expression, my career and my first love," she said in a statement released by Toronto-based Contender Communications & Consulting. "I wouldn't be who I am without this game, and it has been a true honour to have been able to call myself a volleyball player for the last 30 years." The Kitchener, Ont., native will continue to oversee Next LVL Consulting, which supports young volleyball athletes during the recruiting process to pursue NCAA scholarships.
In 2013, Pavan decided to compete internationally in beach volleyball, becoming the first established professional indoor player to make the change.