2019 world champion and two-time Olympian Sarah Pavan announced her retirement from professional beach volleyball. The 1.96m-tall Canadian star made her announcement in an Instagram video on Tuesday.

“Volleyball has always been so much more than a sport to me,” said 38-year-old Pavan. “It has been my social circle, my safe space, my classroom, my vehicle of self-expression, my career, and my first love. I am so fortunate to have had countless people in my corner over the years – coaches, teammates, family, friends, fans, and other supporters – who have made me into the person and athlete that I am, and I am so grateful. I have to give a special thanks to my family and to my husband Adam for believing in my dreams even more than I did, for letting me fly, and for always giving me a safe place to land.”

Pavan began playing indoor volleyball at the age of 10 and retires as one of the most accomplished Canadian volleyball players in history, having made her first appearance representing her country at the age of 14 on the junior national volleyball team. Pavan made history as the youngest woman ever to be selected for the Canadian senior national team at the age of 16. While attending the University of Nebraska in the United States of America, Pavan won the 2006 NCAA title in indoor volleyball. During her collegiate career, Sarah also received numerous individual athletic and academic honours.

Pavan went on to compete professionally for big clubs from Italy, Korea, Brazil and China for 10 years. As the opposite of Unilever Rio de Janeiro, she was named on the 2013 FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship Dream Team, while also winning silver with her Brazilian club.

Despite having a successful professional indoor volleyball career, which continued until 2018, in 2013 Pavan started to make her switch to professional beach volleyball, appearing on the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour alongside Heather Bansley. After several podiums on the Tour and reaching the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic quarterfinals, they split up and Pavan teamed up with Melissa Humana-Paredes.

The first gold medals started coming in. In 2018, Pavan & Humana-Paredes earned a prestigious Commonwealth Games gold, but their journey together as a team peaked at the 2019 FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championship in Hamburg, where the Canadian duo triumphed with the title. After reaching the quarterfinals at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, they continued their successful path on the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour, but after winning gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, they put an end to their partnership.

With Molley McBain as a teammate, Sarah Pavan made an attempt to qualify for her third Olympic appearance, but being the first team under the cut-off line in the Olympic ranking, they fell just short of making it to Paris 2024.

“I achieved big goals, played on numerous winning teams, and have been part of many winning traditions, but it is the people I shared those moments with and meaningful relationships I made along the way that I will remember most,” continued Pavan in her statement. “I wouldn’t be who I am without this game, and it has been a true honour to have been able to call myself a volleyball player for the last 30 years.”

“On behalf of Volleyball Canada, thank you to Sarah for her extraordinary contributions to the sport of volleyball and beach volleyball in Canada and around the world,” Volleyball Canada’s President and CEO Mark Eckert said. “From her early national team days to her beach World Championship title, Sarah is admired for her many accomplishments, professionalism and dedication to excellence. We wish her all the best in this next chapter of her life and career."

“Sarah’s beach volleyball achievements, combined with her impressive indoor volleyball accomplishments, make her, in my opinion, the most successful volleyball / beach volleyball athlete, male or female, in Canadian history. I wish Sarah all the best with her future aspirations,” said Volleyball Canada’s High Performance Director Ed Drakich.

Pavan will continue to oversee Next LVL Consulting, her consultancy focused on supporting young volleyball athletes as they navigate the recruiting process to pursue NCAA scholarships. Sarah will also continue to manage her very successful online channels. She is hoping to stay connected to the volleyball community by pursuing opportunities in sports media and broadcasting as an expert analyst.

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