Cantley, Que., volleyball player looks forward to ending Canada's long Olympic drought

With a nickname like"banger,"you might expect a guy to have a bit of a reputation.

For 40-year-old Dan Lewis, amember of the Canadian national men's volleyball team, that's certainly true. In fact,his reputation for being a wiseguy when he was youngeralmost cost him his Olympic dreams.

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"I was a complete jerk. Arrogant. Stubborn. Just a total prick Loud and obnoxious," Lewis told CBC Ottawa, from Volleyball Canada's national men's team training centre inGatineau.

It didn't help that Canadian men's volleyball was in turmoil in the 1990s and Lewis wasn't interested in being diplomatic.

'Just not nice'

And while that attitude initially served him well on the court, he ended up hating the person he'd become.

"All that stuff that really worked on the court when I was, say, 21, it really wasn't a nice way to live your life outside of volleyball," said Lewis.

"And I couldn't separate the sport with, say, the social behaviour, [being]with family and friends or meeting friends. Especially socializing. [I was] just not nice."

That's when the frank-talking Lewis went into makeover mode. First, he completely changed the way he played the game so that he could bettercompete against the world's top players, both on the beach and on the court.

Then, he changed himself.

I wanted to play professionally. It was either change or die.- Dan Lewis

"I wanted to play professionally. It was either change or die," said Lewis.

"So I managed to do that and then I got into this thing where I would just always observe myself and then I realized, 'Shit, I don't like myself.'"

"So personality had to change too. Not just technical ... and I just said 'OK, I'm changing. This is it.'"

Today, after a successful professional career playing in Europe, starting a family whichtravels with him during the playing season and settling down in the Cantley, Que., area, Lewis admits he's in a better place.

But there are still the what-ifs.

"There's a huge hole in my career," said Lewis, who's been with Volleyball Canada since 1997.

Canada's drought in men's indoor volleyball has meant that Lewis, and several players before him, haven't even had a taste of Olympic competition.

The team hasn't qualified for the Olympics since the Barcelona Games back in 1992. Do the math: Lewis was 18 years old then, and now he gets his first shot at an Olympics in two decades that is, if Canada's head coach selects him to make the final squad.

'If I don't go, I retire'

"The crazy thing is, there are only 12 guys that can go. And there's probably like 20 that he can pick from," said Lewis.

"If I don't go, I retire. Personally, I accomplished one of my biggest goals, which was to help this program get back into the Olympics and I'm quite happy about that."

Lewis says that "of course" he wants to be picked but he also wants Canada to send the best squad to Rio.

"I want the best team to go. I want the guys that are going to give us the best chance to medalto go," he said.

"We have to perform to get more dollars. We need the dollars to train more guys. Simple as that."

Pool of death

Of the six countries playing in Canada's opening round group, four are among the world's best: Brazil, U.S.A., Italy and France. Canada and Mexico will hope to playthe role of spoiler.

"It's an easier narrative when you're an underdog," said Lewis. "We're going to get an upset or two and we're going to have a chance to get out of the pool and get into the medal rounds, I hope."

Now, Lewis hopes he's picked for one last chance at the Olympics.

Regardless of how the team does in Rio, and regardless of whether Lewismakes the trip, he hopes coaching at some level is in the cards. And who better to warn young, elite players of the hazards ahead?

"Now I really feel like, because I screwed up everything in my life early and fixed it, hey, I can help you: 'Don't make this [mistake]. Pothole! Look out!'" he said.

"I try to just focus on how I can help them You step in if you can, and you kind of pick your chances."

• Listen toDan Lewis's full interview with Alan Neal on All in a Day