From Hilo to Rio. That’s the goal for Reed Sunahara in his first year with the U.S. women’s national volleyball team.
But the journey of getting to the Olympic Games began long before Rio de Janeiro was announced as the 2016 host. For the 50-year-old Sunahara, a three-sport standout at Hilo High, the original road taken was as a player — not coach — a dream fueled by his success at UCLA.
The Bruins won three titles in Sunahara’s first three seasons. But after a car blindsided his motorcycle in 1984, the fall of his senior year, Sunahara faced five operations on the compound fracture of his left tibia.
"The injury changed things, changed everything," Sunahara said before he and the top-ranked Americans left for Campinas, Brazil, and the FIVB World Grand Prix. "I had to find another way to pursue my passion. I am so thankful for the chance to continue the dream of being at the Olympics."
When he was named the assistant national team coach in February, it surprised few who had followed Sunahara’s coaching career. He had long been in the USA Volleyball pipeline, coaching the U.S. women to the Pan American Cup title last summer and the Pan Am Cup gold medal qualifying for the World Grand Prix that began preliminary rounds Friday.
The top-ranked Americans are undefeated in eight matches this year, and first-year head coach Karch Kiraly said Sunahara has been key to the success. Kiraly had been the U.S. assistant coach to Hugh McCutcheon for the past quadrennium, but "I had no head coaching experience," Kiraly said. "Reed has been a very successful head coach. We work well together.
"We are undefeated, but we haven’t played the top teams yet. We’ll see what happens starting this week."
The U.S. opened World Grand Prix on Friday with a four-set win over Russia, and takes on Poland today and host Brazil on Sunday. Then it is off to Belgrade, Serbia, for three matches next week and to Japan the following week for three more matches.
Should the three-time defending champion U.S. team qualify for the final round, the Americans begin their quest for an unprecedented fourth championship Aug. 28 in Sapporo, Japan.
The amount of travel is one of the biggest differences between college and international competition, according to Sunahara, who resigned last year as the winningest coach in the history of the Cincinnati women’s program after 12 seasons.
"The other difference is the quality of player. Every player is the best of the best, so good, so skilled. It’s interesting with players coming in and out of training camp. Who we have on the team this week may not be who we have next week or next year or on the Olympic team. You treat everyone equally, push them all the same way because you never know who is going to step up.
"I like that challenge as a coach."
One player who has risen to the challenge the past eight matches is 2012 Olympic team libero Tama Miyashiro. The Kalani High product and Washington All-American again is on the travel roster that was announced Thursday.
That Sunahara and Miyashiro share kamaaina status has been a plus to both.
"You miss home, but it’s nice to have Reed and the other guys from Hawaii here," Miyashiro said of Sunahara and men’s national team players Kawika and Erik Shoji and Brad Lawson. "It’s a nice connection to home.
"There’s a little change in coaching styles (from the last Olympics), but my goal is to keep learning and keep improving my game."
"What I like about Tama is it doesn’t matter that she’s one of the younger players," Sunahara said. "She’s still developing, but she has this presence, is kind of a glue out there. She’s a typical Hawaii player — good ball-handling and all-around skills, high volleyball IQ, a knowledge of the game that shows she’s been around the game her whole life."
As has Sunahara. He did return to play for UCLA after a redshirt season of rehab, but after losing 10 inches off his vertical, the player called the "Flying Hawaiian" was not the same.
The plus for the two-time All-American was a change in his approach to the game. Instead of relying on natural athletic ability, "I had to work hard to achieve what I did because it didn’t come so easy anymore," he said. "It’s what I’ve tried to teach my players, whatever age or level. That you want to work hard and never look back. You never want to ask, ‘What if I had done this, what if I had done that?’ "
He said he was honored and humbled by the job offer, with a contract that runs through 2016. The father of three — the oldest of which is 17 — said he did consult with his children because it meant he was moving from the midwest to California to be with the national team.
"They told me, ‘Dad, go for it. We want to go to the Olympics, too,’ " Sunahara said. "So we all hope to be there."
