The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

From the collegiate ranks, Eugene Stuart said he’s excited about his journey to Joensuu, Finland, where he’s preparing to make his debut as the third Bahamian to play on the professional volleyball circuit.

Over the weekend, he left for Joensuu and has now settled in, preparing for the start of their season on September 29 with the Karelian Hurmos, who are playing in the Mestaruusliga League - the highest level in the country.

“I’m getting adjusted to the time, weather and being with my new team-mates,” Stuart told The Tribune. “I’m just excited to be here and they have warmly welcomed me. I start training with the team today, so I will see how that goes.”

The 2015 St Augustine’s College graduate who went on to star for the University of Charleston, West Virginia, up until he graduated in May with his bachelor of science degree in sports business said it was always his dream to play professionally.

Having had a chance to either do it in basketball or volleyball, Stuart said he chose the latter because it gave him the opportunity to prove that there are a lot more Bahamians who can play at the next level, following in the footsteps of Byron Ferguson and Shonari Hepburn.

“Since I started playing, this was something that I dreamt about,” said Stuart about turning pro. “I definitely want to thank Byron and Shonari, who were both there to encourage me to go for it. They gave me some pointers and what I can expect when I get there.”

In March as he was preparing to graduate from the University of Charleston, Stuart said he mentioned it to his coach and after their Senior Day, he made the initial contact in securing an agent, who got him signed to a one-year deal with Karelian Hurmos.

Stuart, the 6-foot, 7-inch middle blocker, said after watching Ferguson and Hepburn play, he is confident that he can fit in and make it in the pros as well.

“It can only get better from here for me,” he said. “I’m hoping one day, some other player would say I would like to follow in Eugene’s footsteps. So it’s definitely mind blowing that I made it here. It can only get better for me from here.”

Stuart, 23, is one of two players from this side of the world on their team. The other is from the United States. The rest of the team is made up of Finnish and Latin players and one from Romania.

When the season starts in September, games will be played every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. He will have Saturday, Sunday and Monday off, either to practice or enjoy some downtime.

As the youngest child of Enid and Fabian Stuart, Stuart hopes that he can be an inspiration to his siblings, Telnear Stuart-Cartwright and Dwayne Mackey. He has been encouraged by the support he’s gotten from his family, friends and the volleyball community.

“I want to thank God, my family, my school, the University of Charleston, West Virginia, my coaches, Shonari and Byron and Courtney Neal. They were all there for me with my signing,” he summed up.

“I’ve had a lot of people who have been texting me and encouraging me to hold my head up. So I want to thank everybody who has been communicating with me. I’m really excited to be here.”

The city of Joensuu, according to Stuart, is a very small one with every place just about a bike ride away or in walking distance. He’s just learning the route to get to the gym and the food store. “The people here are friendly,” he pointed out. “It’s a nice city. The only thing I’m scared about is the weather. Up here, there are 24 hours of darkness and it’s normally negative 30 degrees in the winter.”

And although they speak Finnish, Stuart said he’s learning a few common things like ‘hi, bye, please, thank you, you welcome and what’s this,” so that he can ease through the process.

“It’s something that I have to get used to,” he stated. “But I am here until the end of the season in April, so I hope that I can pick up on one or few words. I hope to return home saying some Finnish.”

In the meantime, Stuart said he wants to encourage more young people to get involved in the sport because one day they too can be branching out to make that next step in the professional ranks.

“Everybody just thinks about basketball and track and field, but they can also look at playing volleyball,” Stuart said. “If me and Byron and Shonari can do it, they can do it too.”