Beyond Athletic with Ryan Jay Owens

Heather Bown, an Olympic silver medalist and three-time Olympian in volleyball, reflects on her incredible journey from a shy high school swimmer to a volleyball star. She shares how doubters fueled her drive and the pivotal moments that shaped her career. Heather opens up about setbacks during her Olympic journey, emphasizing the importance of preparation and team trust. Now in graduate school and mentoring young athletes, she also discusses her daily rituals and the valuable lessons she's learned about success and resilience.

“My motto that i live by !Q:“Every choice you make have consequences”@4:23, whether it is in decision in job, life, the same way that i am raising my son and my daughter,they talk to me about things and i have repeated that many times when they were young and now when they are older.First i made decisions for them, that is what i am doing with my players also, we are trying to be prepared every year , every decision they made it is all critical, there is gonna be consequences, good positive, and negative for them.” “In high school i realized that i really enjoy athletics, it is something that i wanted to do with my life , in the college i got in touch with boys and girls club. even when i was in college i started to coach and getting involved in teams”@6:40 !Q:“I had sucess, and i think that success was tight to that i am very committed and dedicated i am trying to learn, i was like that as player and i bring same attitude to coaching”@6.45 “My rise was the matter that i was humble when i was the young man , reaching people to learn , and i enjoy learning , i do not believe that there is one way of doing things , i do believe that if you keep an open mind, you are capable of pulling things from different peoples, and learn from different sources. “@10min !RJO:”Who has been most influential in your life up until this point and what is the moment when you realize that they were?” “Support of my parent, but they support was so critical in everything that i done. Graduating and becoming coach was not popular in 1980. !RJO:”What types of things you do when students are preparing to come to your school, and while are there especially 1st year to try to get them to that level so that they do not regret 4 years of learning lessons?” !RJO: “What do see for being a main difference between international players and your American players?”@16.40 “Internationals players tends to be a little more mature.... listen for more.

In this conversation, Milica Kubura, a Serbian volleyball player and freshman at Florida State University, shares her adventurous journey of living alone in Italy at just 14. She reveals the challenges of training abroad while mastering Italian and the motivations behind her bold decision to move to the U.S. to pursue both volleyball and education. Milica also discusses her quick decision-making process, defining success, and offers inspiring advice for young athletes about embracing change and trusting their instincts.

Carlos Eduardo Schwanke, a former Brazilian volleyball star and 1996 Olympian, shares his inspiring journey from a 'fat' kid to an elite athlete. He discusses the crucial role of mentors in his life, the impact of rejection on his perseverance, and his mental strategies for handling pressure. Schwanke reflects on the emotional highs of the Olympics and emphasizes the importance of setting goals and giving back. With anecdotes of resilience and transformation, he proves that determination and the right guidance can lead to greatness.

Justin Duff, a former Team Canada volleyball member and Canadian professional indoor player, shares his inspiring journey from flipping burgers at McDonald's to conquering top European leagues. He discusses the importance of goal-setting and embracing failures while envisioning life beyond sports with business aspirations in catering and writing. Justin highlights crucial moments of adversity, including a lost contract and recovery routines under pressure. His insights on hard work, perseverance, and personal accountability shine through, making for a motivating conversation.

In this conversation, Suzana Ćebić, a two-time Olympian and Serbian national team libero, shares her inspiring journey of resilience after a serious illness that left her unable to walk. She reflects on balancing her sports career with education, the pivotal support from her family, and her intense on-court persona versus a calm off-court life. Suzana also discusses her future aspirations post-sports and the significance of mentorship for young athletes, emphasizing the importance of never giving up on dreams.

Brankica Mihajlovic, a professional volleyball player and Olympian, shares her inspiring journey from Bosnia to representing Serbia on the world stage. She discusses her early start in volleyball, the challenges of moving abroad at just 18, and the mental resilience needed to thrive in high-pressure environments. Brankica reveals her guiding motto focused on respect and helping others, along with her training habits and future aspirations beyond sports. Plus, she offers advice for aspiring athletes to dream big and strive for continual self-improvement.

This week, Sanja Tomasevic, a Serbian-born national champion and pro volleyball player, shares her journey from Serbia to the University of Washington and her career as a coach. She discusses the tough choice of choosing a green card over Olympic dreams and her impactful transition to coaching. Sanja reflects on transformative moments, including a painful loss that led to personal growth. She also shares her coaching philosophy, the challenges of recruiting international athletes, and her ambitious plans to support Balkan athletes.

Athlete Case Study Episode 1: We start this podcast journey off huge with the true honor to interview a good friend and great champion Anja (Spasojevic) Pešić of Serbia. Such a down to earth, responsible and humble person. It was a pleasure to sit with her and chat about volleyball & life. We're here in a wonderful city I'm calling a second home, Belgrade, situated in the forest mere steps from Belgradian's summer lake getaway Lake Ada and families enjoying the HEAT! She's not only won multiple international pro titles with teams from Russia, Italy, France, Switzerland and Turkey but national (Olympic) team before 2007 with the Serbian national team helping to propel them into the international spotlight. In this episode we get to learn fun stuff about Anja & about how she fell into volleyball and although she still(?!) can't pancake (dive) like a Logan Tom she gets it done on the court in her special style. A style which has been created by watching the greats of her sport play and incorporating their psychological and technical tatics into her own. Big lessons about how parent's can support a child's path into sports, how finishing education should be #1 before turning pro, how mentorship is invaluable in helping players make tough decision while they are young and stay on the right path & MORE! Anja's now retired officially and while she didn't get teh international spotlight as she very well deserves she built an image and name for herself showing resiliency in the face of defeat and always being a self-starter and her own worst criticmade it to the top tier of professional athletes globally in volleyball.