After helping lead the Camosun Chargers men’s volleyball team to the national championship in 2022, Vitor Pereira has been nominated for the Sport BC Athlete of the Year Award under the College Athlete category.
Pereira—who moved to Canada from Brazil in 2016 and joined the Chargers in 2018—had a lot of ups and downs in the four years he played with the Chargers, including a pandemic, but it all seemed to come together in the end after the Chargers won gold in nationals.
The cherry on top might come on March 9, when the winner of the award is announced in Vancouver (there are four other students nominated).
Pereira says that he’s grateful that his head coach of four years, Charles Parkinson, was able to see his team win gold before his retirement from coaching. Although this isn’t Parkinson’s first time leading a team to gold, it was a perfect way to end his coaching career.
“It’s definitely good. I mean, I didn’t want to get another silver medal,” says Pereira. “So, it was great to win provincials and nationals was even better. Not only for me but for Charles.”
Pereira’s favourite part of his Camosun experience was playing for the Chargers. He said his team was like a family that echoed a brotherly dynamic. While they would fight from time to time it was always quickly resolved, and they remain friends to this day.
“The dynamic was incredible. I mean, the best friends I’ve made in Canada [were] the ones from volleyball. So yeah, the dynamic was great,” he says. “It was awesome to play with them. And yeah, we had little fights during the whole process, because it’s a long process: lots of games, lots of practices, but I think it’s normal and in the end everything was great.”
Parkinson believes that Pereira encapsulates the ideal student-athlete in his work ethic both on the court and in the classroom. He says that Pereira led by example, which inspired others to emulate his hard work and self-driven motivation.
“I think it’s equally important to look at the student side of this equation because all of the athletes at college are students first and athletes second,” says Parkinson. “And for Vitor to be able to play at the level that he’s playing, and also graduate with a bachelor of Business Administration… I think, really, he embodies what the student-athlete is all about and the kind of discipline and rigor that’s required to be outstanding in both.”
Pereira says that he’s excited to be nominated for the Sport BC award, but says that he doesn’t play volleyball for the accolades. He’s more grateful to win and play alongside a strong team. Being a nominee is a result of his hard work, but he says he won’t lose any sleep if he doesn’t win. In Pereira’s mind, playing for the Chargers is a win in itself.
“I mean, it looks like a big deal,” he says. “So, I was honoured by being nominated but it’s also, like, not as special as playing and winning. But it’s also because we don’t play for that kind of stuff too, but I don’t want to sound like I don’t think it’s cool or anything. But we play to win and that’s just like, a consequence of the whole process. I’m definitely honoured, I mean, It’s awesome. I can’t wait to win the award and celebrate with the people who played with me.”