Home|Sports|Stuart returns to Europe for pro volleyballSports

Simba FrenchSend an emailSeptember 7, 2023 45 3 minute readFacebookTwitterLinkedInShare via Email

Bahamian Eugene Stuart is returning to Europe to continue his professional volleyball career after a one-year hiatus. He heads to Portugal to play for the Vitória Sport Clube based in Guimarães, Portugal, for the 2023-2024 season.

Stuart will be playing in the Portuguese Volleyball League A1 – the premier volleyball league in Portugal. It was a tough year but he just kept working, and his agent was able to find him a good contract.

“I just want to go to Europe to do my best,” Stuart said. “Obviously, the team saw certain characteristics and certain qualities in me and they have expectations. I generally want to be able to maintain that standard that they are looking for. I know my caliber and strength of play, so I just want to be able to bring my level of play to them and give my best for the season.”

Vitória finished the season with a 6-7 win/loss record, placing seventh out of 14 teams. Stuart wants to take them to a higher finish this upcoming season. The season gets underway on October 7.

“I know that they’re looking for a stronger team to make it in the playoffs or maybe even to the championship. I’ve already spoken with some of the staff and that’s what they told me. They have bigger goals than they would normally have. Like I said, I want to go there and bring my strength and my expertise,” Stuart said.

Although he was inactive last season, Stuart had a busy year playing volleyball as he helped New Providence win the Bahamas Games title and also helped the Tour Daddy Defenders win the New Providence Volleyball Association (NPVA) men’s title. He also represented The Bahamas on the senior men’s national team at the 18th Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association (CAZOVA) Senior Championships in Paramaribo, Suriname, over the summer.

“It was a good experience this year. We had a good caliber team (national team) this year. We just fell short of our goals, but nonetheless, it’s still a learning experience. I’m always happy to play and travel with the national team. It’s always great to have your country on your back and represent the country because many people don’t get the opportunity. To be able to play and represent the country is always a great experience. We will come back firing on all cylinders the next time we play,” Stuart said.

In beach volleyball, Stuart teamed up with Jon Isaacs and the two played on two stops on the 2023 NORCECA (North, Central American and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation) Beach Volleyball Tour.

“When I started in beach, I was a bit shaky on my feet, but it wasn’t like I was transitioning to a whole new sport – it was still volleyball,” Stuart said. “It’s just slower timing, smarter and more hard work, but nonetheless you get the hang of it. I think with the transition from beach to indoor, I’m able to still jump. I feel like my jump has gotten higher and I could pass better. It’s smarter in terms of blocking and in terms of attacking. I could be able to use those qualities that I learned from beach and transition them over into indoors.”

The middle attacker has played in Finland, Romania and more recently in Croatia. He said they take volleyball more seriously in Europe than on this side of the world.

“They (Europe) have more resources, more financing, more leagues and so there’s more ability and more availability to play. My teammates play in season, then the volleyball nationals, then the world championships and in Euro leagues, so they have different opportunities to play unlike us. When we go to these countries and we play, we play for eight months and then we come back home and then we possibly have national team play. My teammates continue playing. From this side of the world, we have to work harder to maintain our form, our ability, and our strength. It is put on a higher pedestal in Europe,” Stuart said.

It was a good year for Stuart at home, but he is excited to be heading back to Europe to play the sport he loves. He is looking forward to representing The Bahamas on the big stage again. For him, it is a blessing to continue to play the sport professionally.