Beach volleyball player from Dartmouth chases dream to make national team | CBC News

Tynan Gannett is on his way to becoming a volleyball titan.

At just 20 years old, Gannett is believed to be the first Nova Scotian man to make a national beach volleyball team. 

Gannett grew up in Dartmouth, N.S., and competed for Team Nova Scotia at the 2022 Canada Summer Games in Niagara, Ont. That’s where he was scouted for Volleyball Canada’s Beach Next Gen National Team.

He said he tried out, was selected and by January, he had moved to Toronto to begin training for international competitions.

“It feels pretty good,” Gannett said. “Quite a few years have gone into this. So yes, it’s very satisfying.” 

Gannett played volleyball for Dartmouth High School and the Dartmouth Volleyball Club as a teen. He said he spent a lot of time at the beach training facility in Burnside.

“I was there three or four times a week for three summers in a row before [the] Canada Games.” 

In Toronto, he now trains Monday to Friday twice a day with his team. 

Gannett is competing in multiple domestic events across the country this summer, including in Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver, before a world tour event in Edmonton in July.

He said travelling is all part of the job, but it is the biggest expense as the athletes are required to pay for their travel.

“I’m going mostly off of savings from a job I had back in Dartmouth. I worked at a Tennis Club for five summers, St. George’s, and I can do a little coaching up here in Toronto and I referee a little bit,” he said. 

But, Gannett said, he couldn’t have achieved his dream without help from back home. Earlier this month, he was encouraged to start a GoFundMe page to help cover costs.

“Everyone from back home especially has been super supportive,” he said.

“I mean outside of money, I get words of encouragement from all my friends. Everybody seems to be keeping up with what I’m doing, all the tournaments I play. So it’s been really sweet and it’s been awesome to see and feel backed while I’m here.” 

Andrew Costa, Gannett’s former coach, said he is well-deserving of the placement. He said Gannett was his first athlete he worked with to make the national team. 

“The reality is that Tynan has worked for everything he’s gotten,” Costa said. 

Costa said he saw rawness and potential in Gannett from the start, as he demonstrated high athleticism and coordination.

“He had a good base knowledge from playing indoor volleyball and always seemed to rise to the challenge, whether that was playing against opponents that were stronger at the time than him or asking him to develop a new skill, he caught on quickly and was very determined to master that skill,” he said.

Costa said he is extremely happy and proud of Gannett. When he got the call that Gannett had made the team, he was “over the moon for him.”

He said this is just the beginning for Gannett.

“He’s going to be a fantastic role model for future volleyball Nova Scotia athletes … I’m excited to see what this summer and the next couple of years bring for him with repping the Maple Leaf.”