Volleyball moving to California

0 Comments | Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Mar 29, 2006 | by MERI-JO BORZILLERI THE GAZETTE

The U.S. men's volleyball team has an altitude problem.

So after nine years, it's moving from Colorado Springs to Anaheim, Calif.

The team's last official day at the U.S. Olympic Training Center is Friday. USA Volleyball's 39-person administrative staff and the U.S. women's team will remain in Colorado Springs, at least for the near future.

The move comes as little surprise because the team has been exploring it for at least a year.

The problem: Increased impact of the jump serve in the men's game.

At high altitude, jump serves -- like baseballs at Coors Field -- fly farther than at sea level. Most competitions, including the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, are held at low altitude.

That requires adjustments in serving and serve receiving. When the U.S. team readies for a tournament, it often leaves Colorado Springs a week early to get accustomed to playing in the thicker air.

Neither the U.S. men's nor the U.S. women's team have won a medal in the two Olympics since moving here from San Diego in 1997.

"This is the reason for the move," said Riley Salmon in an e- mail from Turkey, where he plays professionally after helping the U.S. team finish fourth in Athens. "We are very hungry for a medal."

Salmon owns a house in Colorado Springs and has a newborn daughter. Keith Barnett has "mixed emotions" about leaving. Life might be bland at the training center, but it meets the needs of athletes.

The team, consisting of about 24 players, head coach Hugh McCutcheon, assistant coach Ron Larsen, and a technical coordinator and trainer, will move to Anaheim, where official training at the privately owned, 22-court American Sports Center begins May 1. The joint agreement involves Anaheim, the center and a sports medicine company at the center.

"It's a great move for us," said Al Monaco, USA Volleyball president.

Volleyball will give up U.S. Olympic Training Center conveniences like a cafeteria, sports medicine and living quarters all within walking distance and inexpensive housing for players who want to live on their own.

"We believe it is important for teams to train in the environment that will allow them to meet their competitive objectives," said Darryl Seibel USOC spokesman.

"It's an unknown factor," said player Keith Barnett during practice this week at the training center, "how the food's going to be, the living conditions... I think they have the best intentions in mind for the growth of the sport."

Team officials are counting on southern California's thick air and volleyball culture to help balance the ledger. Anaheim, famous for Disneyland, is the magic kingdom for men's college and high school volleyball.

"It puts our team in the heart of where the upcoming talent is," Beal said.

Anaheim has agreed to pay for some of the team's moving expenses and room and board. Athletes will be housed in hotels in the short term and the city is working on sponsorship deals for food, agreeing to pay if deals fall through.

But altitude looms large. No one predicted how the powerful jump serve would come to dominate the men's game.

Two 70 mph serves, explains McCutcheon, behave drastically different. In Colorado Springs, at about 6,034 feet, it would travel about 31/2 feet farther than a serve struck at sea level.

"At an elite level, it's a matter of degrees," McCutcheon said. "If we're going to be the best team in the world, we've got to go."

Impact on the training center's athlete residency program is expected to be minimal. Currently, athletes from nine teams live on site at the U.S. Olympic Training Center. The U.S. synchronized swimming team agreed to move here from California.

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0259 or merijo@gazette.com