DANIELLA BOSIO
Assistant Sports Editor
He is 6 feet 11 inches and is arguably the tallest man on campus. He despises flying on airplanes because his legs are too long to fit in coach seats, and he ends up playing footsy with the person next to him. This summer, senior volleyball player Andy Hein, was overjoyed to find that he would be seated in an exit row with plenty of leg room, while onboard a 12-hour flight to Izmir, Turkey. Hein was headed to one of the most prestigious events for college athletes, the World University Games, also called the Universiade.
The Universiade takes place every two years in a different city around the world. It is an international sporting event that is similar to the Olympic Games, except it is for collegiate athletes only. Similar to the Olympics, this event begins with opening ceremonies and ends with closing ceremonies. This year, there were roughly 70,000 spectators attending the opening ceremonies.
“Besides winning a medal,” Hein said, “opening ceremonies was the greatest part of the games.”
After winning a national championship with the Waves last spring and tabbing first team All-American honors, Hein said he was thrilled to be asked to play on the United States World University Games Team.
The team was composed of 12 college-level and recently graduated players, Hein being the youngest. The starting lineup included Hein as middle blocker, middle blocker Matt Denmark from Ball State University, outside hitter Robert Tarr from Long Beach State, setter Tyler Hildebrand from Long Beach State, outside hitter Jimmy Pelzel from UC Irvine, libero Paul Munoz from Long Beach State and opposite hitter Nils Nielsen from Cal State Northridge.
This year marks the second time that Hein was asked to play on this team. In 2003, Hein, along with fellow Pepperdine teammate and AVCA Player of the Year Sean Rooney, traveled to Daegu, South Korea, where the United States placed third in the tournament and won the bronze medal.
During the summer, Hein traveled with the team to Izmir, Turkey, where he represented the United States in an eight-match tournament. The United States placed 11th overall in the tournament by defeating Belgium in their final match.
Hein devoted most of his summer in preparation for the games. He went to the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs at the end of July where he trained twice a day for two weeks. He left for Turkey at the beginning of August and the team trained for a week prior to opening ceremonies. The games went from Aug. 11 through 21 and the United States played a total of eight games with a record of 4-4.
Hein was a bit upset about the team’s 11th-place finish. However, he was pleased with the team’s chemistry and unity.
“I think we could have done better in the tournament,” Hein said. “We had good chemistry, but we were one or two players short of winning a medal.”
In the tournament, the team played Lebanon, France, China, Belgium, Slovakia, South Korea and Russia.
This tournament allowed Hein to make new friends, travel around the world and to play volleyball at a level that is higher than the college game, he said.
“I have aspirations to get to the Olympic team,” Hein said. “A lot of players who played in the World University Games went on to compete in the Olympics and that is my dream. I want to win a gold medal.”
Hein enjoyed the high level of the international games in Turkey.
“Players are faster, stronger and more consistent,” Hein said. “I feel like I improved as a volleyball player, and playing in Turkey gave me a desire to play volleyball internationally after I graduate.”
Volleyball has been a driving force in Hein’s life for making friends and traveling the world.
“I had the opportunity to play on a team with players who are considered my rivals in NCAA,” Hein said. “We all became very close friends.”
Although volleyball took up most of Hein’s time in Izmir, he said he truly relished the minimal free time he had to explore the Turkish sights and to hang out in the athletes’ village. Hein traveled to Ephesus, which contains large Roman ruins. Hein said he was taken aback by this experience.
“It was a humbling experience,” Hein said. “It was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen in my life.”
Hein met several people in the athletes’ village. He was able to venture around the village and socialize with athletes from all over the world. The village had restaurants, churches, Internet cafes and social activity centers. He traded shirts and United States attire with people from other countries.
This year has been great for Hein. However, he said he does not let all of this excitement get to his head. This year Hein has been named captain of the Pepperdine men’s volleyball team, and he said he plans on continuing the Waves’ winning streak throughout the entire 2006 season.
As for Hein’s future after graduation, he plans on traveling oversees to play volleyball internationally and winning his own gold medal one day for the United States.
10-06-2005