We’re excited to renew our support for Luke Campbell and the GMVA program which through difficult times has continued its incredible work promoting volleyball and giving kids the opportunity to embrace all the sport has to offer including scholarships in the USA & the chance to represent Australia.

The GMVA

The Great Melbourne Volleyball Academy (GMVA) was created by Luke Campbell following a successful professional volleyball career which led to him representing Australia at the 2004 Athens Olympics. The program is comprised of 9 different squads, each catering to athletes at different ages and levels of development and each with their own head & assistant coach supporting the players to improve. These range from younger kids just getting into active sport and using Volleyball as a way to develop both physical and social skills to more elite athletes which take part in the GMVA’s Centre of Excellence Program designed to help young Australian volleyballers achieve success in the USA’s collegiate competition, professional leagues and rise to the national stage. To date 53 young athletes have received scholarships to attend North American colleges, 10 have become professional volleyballers and 10 have represented Australia’s national team (read more here).

Their 2022 Results

It has been a difficult couple of years for Luke and his team as the covid lockdowns closed their training facility down for long stretches of 2020 & 2021. But the GMVA team are back stronger than ever in 2022 tallying an impressive list of achievements including:

• Winning Volleyball Victoria’s ‘Junior Program of the Year’
• Having over 500 kids register for their SpikeZone Program
• Helped secure USA college scholarships for two more of their female athletes
• Helped secure Canadian college scholarships for two more of their male athletes
• Celebrated receiving their 50^th collegiate scholarship (current tally stands at 53)
• Another GMVA male athlete being selected for the Australian Men’s National Team
• GMVA’s founder & head coach Luke Campbell winning Volleyball Victoria’s ‘Coach of The Year’
• Celebrating the decorated career of their Girl’s Head Coach Kell Lean whom this year retired as the Australian Team’s Captain

These results would be impressive in their own right, under any circumstance. But to put together this stack of achievements on the back of a pandemic that shut down their ability to travel, compete or even train is exceptional. But while it is exemplary, it is also not surprising. The same grit and determination were on display half a decade ago when Luke worked for free spending months contacting hundreds of American college programs about Australia’s volleyball talent. This effort created the pipeline of opportunity that’s since rewarded 53 young athletes with scholarships and a pathway to competing on the professional/national stage. It showed a level of tenacity that clearly came in handy when called on to guide the GMVA program through the lockdowns.

In 2023 we’re proud to continue sponsoring organisations like the GMVA to support them as they help kids develop physical and social skills and open a door for Australia’s elite Volleyballers to realise their dreams on the biggest stage volleyball has to offer.