Photo: Contributed Mike Hawkins (left) and Kevin Tillie (right). More than a decade after competing together as teammates, two former TRU WolfPack volleyball players found themselves on opposing ends of the court at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Mike Hawkins played for the ‘Pack from 2010 until 2012 before he made the switch to coaching, starting in an assistant coaching position with TRU and making several stops in Lethbridge and UBC Okanagan before landing with the UBC Thunderbirds.
He said he was offered a gig as an assistant coach for Team Canada in early 2023. WolfPack alumni Kevin Tillie played from 2009 until 2011, sharing a season with Hawkins. Tillie moved to Kamloops from France to pursue volleyball, which eventually took him to Italy before he joined up with France’s national team prior the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Two Olympics later and the pair found their squads squaring off during the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Squadmates turned opponents Speaking with Castanet, both Hawkins and Tillie said running into each other on and off the court was a common occurrence during the summer tournament circuit. “I saw him all day, every day, all summer,” Hawkins said.
Tillie said the two bump into each frequently on the road, where they’ll exchange words and catch up. “It happens all the time, every weekend we play against someone that we know,” Tillie said. “When it's the Olympics, there's this particular feeling that you really don't want to lose against them.
” France would eventually sweep Team Canada in straight sets during their second pool game, qualifying the team for the quarterfinals and eventually leading to their gold medal. “Obviously it sucked, we were on the receiving end of their success,” Hawkins said. “But, pretty damn cool to have a personal relationship with a guy who's now a two time Olympic gold medalist.
” The elite of the elite It was Tillie’s third time competing in the Olympics, following an early round defeat in Rio in 2016 and a gold medal in Tokyo in 2020. He said competing in Paris was a whole other animal. “Despite the bad weather, the rain and everything, all the people were out there to support and watch the ceremony.
It was super loud, and it was beautiful,” he said. “And at that point we felt really like, ‘Oh, this is going to be an amazing Olympics.’” Hawkins said it was hard to put into words how he felt bumping shoulders with the “elite of the elite,” including athletes, coaches, sports scientists, and athletic therapists.
“Every day you're in the Olympic Village and you're in line at the food court, at the dining hall, and you're like, ‘Oh, that's Simone Biles.’ You're asking Penny Oleksiak if you can grab the milk,” he said. “There's everybody who's the absolute best at what they do, and you feel almost like it's a tangible thing as you're walking around.
” Tillie said his second Olympic win still hasn’t sunk in yet, saying winning the first time around was already a dream come true. “It's crazy enough to do it once, so to be able to do it twice, I don't think I understand, still, how important it was in the volleyball world to be able to win twice in a row,” he said. 'How the hell did that happen?' Tillie said travelling to Kamloops to play for TRU was a foundational experience early in his career that helped him both on and off the court, adding he met his wife in the Tournament Capital — another former WolfPack player.
“When I travel and play competition and see some players, there are always one or two that will know about Kamloops and Thompson Rivers, and we'll talk about it and it's always fun to share these experiences and see a familiar faces,” he said. He added he was unsure if he’d return for a fourth Olympics, noting his age. Meanwhile, Hawkins is still trying to figure out how his career path led him to Paris.
“How the hell did that happen? Like, how did these pieces of this puzzle just kind of all piece together?” he said laughing. Coming off the experience, Hawkins said he’ll foremost remember the pride he felt representing Canada. "I may get the chance to do that in the future, I may not.
This might be my only opportunity," he said. “But that overwhelming sense of pride in being Canadian and representing Canada, representing my family, my friends, my former teammates, my former coaches..
. those are the things that I think are going to be really special, and I'll hold near and dear to my heart.".
