Cowell signs with top-level French club Paris Volley

Colton Cowell had to wait more than four months to announce his latest volleyball adventure -- signing a two-year deal with world power Paris Volley -- and that wasn't easy.

Cowell signed the contract in February, but it wasn't officially announced by the club until Wednesday, so the King Kekaulike High School graduate and 2021 NCAA champion for the University of Hawaii kept it to himself and immediate family because he was still playing for his team in Germany.

"It transpired prior to the ending or the conclusion of my professional season in Germany. However, I was unable to announce it until my club officially released that information, and today, on June 21st, the summer solstice, Paris Volleyball announced that I will be joining the team for the next two seasons," Cowell said via phone between training sessions with the USA

Volleyball Beach National Team on Wednesday in California. "And I was able to confirm that information with the volleyball world."

Cowell admitted that it was not easy to sit on such exciting news.

"It certainly took a significant degree of patience," he said. "Obviously I communicated the information to my family and had to make sure that they didn't disclose any of that information to the public. However, I was certainly excited about the opportunity and it was difficult to practice patience in many interactions that I had in regards to what my plans were the following season and it feels incredible to know that information has been released to the public and I can proudly communicate to anybody who asks openly and honestly about where I will be for the next two seasons.

"Yeah, I'm thrilled. I'm thrilled."

Cowell gained a big chance for the signing when his SVG Luneburg team from Germany beat Italian first division power Modena in a CEV Cup match in January.

"We ended up beating them in five sets at home and it drew a lot of attention from agents, agencies and professional clubs throughout the world and it was one of the biggest upsets in professional men's volleyball in as long as many can remember," Cowell said. "We had significant odds stacked against us and we were able to overcome those odds.

"Modena has the reigning Olympic most valuable player named Earvin N'Gapeth, he's a French national team outside hitter. And they have Bruno Rezende, who is the current Brazilian national team setter. ... Both will be Olympians in the next Olympics in Paris next summer."

Within two weeks of that monumental upset, Cowell said: "My agent contacted me and said that a club known as Paris Volleyball in France's first league was interested in signing me on a multi-year contract. ... We ended up negotiating a two-year contract through 2025."

Luneburg won a bronze medal in the Bundesliga in May and Cowell returned to his training base in Los Angeles shortly after. He will leave for Paris in August for the season that runs until May.

Cowell said the French league is one of the top five pro men's leagues in the world.

"I would think it's ranked currently as the fourth-best league in the world behind Italy, Poland and Russia," Cowell said. "The talent level in this league is significant. It will be a major test for the kid out of Maui, Hawaii."

Cowell's younger sister Chandler suffered a season-ending torn ACL at a UH indoor practice in late May, an injury that likely ends her career in Manoa. The younger sister said that she felt her brother was taking the news harder than her when she spoke to The Maui News shortly after the injury.

"Chandler's injury was very, very frustrating news to bear witness to," Colton Cowell said. "I love my little sister obviously and I cherish her more than anything, I cherish my family more than anything. And seeing, from at least my perspective, that her opportunity had been taken from her and that her path at the University of Hawaii had been altered through this injury was very frustrating.

"I wanted her to have that senior year that I experienced at the University of Hawaii, one of the most incredible life experiences that anyone can ever experience. And she will experience that same senior night ceremony, it will just be in a different regard than we both had sought out."

Colton Cowell, who underwent surgery for full rotator cuff and labrum reconstructions, a biceps realignment and bone spur removal in his right arm shortly after the 2021 NCAA title with UH, said he has perhaps even more respect now for his sister, who has not ruled out a medical redshirt nor a professional career.

They share the same orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Burt Moritz on Oahu.

"I do feel that Chandler has taken this injury in about as much of professional regard as possible, she continues to focus on graduate school, she is focused on now finding employment opportunities that are going to allow her to pursue either a second master's degree or work within the university system and have part of her tuition covered," Colton said. "And I feel that she's being extremely proactive considering the circumstances. She's an incredible human, she's an incredible human being."

Colton Cowell is aiming for a shot to make the U.S. indoor team for the Paris Olympics next summer, and certainly his new professional opportunity is a big step on that road. He said either indoor or beach may be his Olympic path for Los Angeles in 2028, but indoor is his absolute focus for his 2024 national team hopes.

"I'm currently training with the USAV Beach National Team as opposed to indoor -- I felt that the different stimulus with playing beach volleyball would allow me to maintain my touch on the ball without having to spend 10 or nearly 11 months of every single year inside of a gym," he said. "So I feel that the different stimulus was necessary for me mentally and emotionally and I have a background in beach volleyball and I'm really enjoying committing this summer to learning more about that type of competition.

"You have to think a bit more -- at times it's a very cerebral game -- and it certainly has, I feel, improved my indoor game."

His chances for wearing "USA" on his chest for the Paris Olympics next summer are certainly alive.

"If I perform very well in this next season internationally I will never count myself out of an opportunity given that I understand what it takes to be successful," he said. "And I feel that I have an unrelenting work ethic. However, I would never count my chickens before they hatch, I would never assume that anything is a given and I will simply just be putting my head down and working as hard as I possibly can for 2024.

"And if 2024 is not in my career path then I will ultimately pursue 2028, which I believe is held in Los Angeles, and that has yet to be determined whether it will be indoor or beach volleyball."

* Robert Collias is at rcollias@mauinews.com