Michelle Sawatzky-Koop (born July 14, 1970 in

Steinbach, Manitoba Steinbach () is the List of cities in Manitoba, third-largest city in the province of Manitoba, Canada, and with a population of 17,806, the largest community in the Eastman Region, Manitoba, Eastman region. The city, located about southeast of ...

) is a Canadian retired volleyball player and former radio broadcaster. She competed at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

with the Women's National Team, where the team finished 9th. As a university player for the

Manitoba Bisons The Manitoba Bisons are the athletic teams that represent the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The football team plays at Princess Auto Stadium, the soccer team plays at the outdoor soccer field on campus, track and field te ...

, she was a two-time CIS Championship MVP in 1990 and 1991, as well a two-time CIS player of the year for the 1990–91 and 1991-92 seasons. Sawatzky was a part of the Bison's

women's volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

team that won three CIS championships in 1990, 1991 and 1992. In 1995, she joined the Canadian national team, who won a bronze medal at the Pan American Games in Argentina. In July 1996 the team finished 9th at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta.Michelle Sawatzky-Koop - Canadian Olympic Women's Volleyball Team
Retrieved 20 April 2011. From 1997 to 2024, Sawatzky was a radio broadcaster and Morning Show co-host on CHSM,

CFAM CFAM (950 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a community-oriented full service format of classical music, talk radio with a community focus, agricultural and financial reports and religious programming. Licensed to Altona, Manitoba, the st ...

, and CJRB radio in southern Manitoba. In 2024, she left radio to work for the Southeast Event Centre in downtown Steinbach. Sawatzky graduated from the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

School of Music in 1993 with a Bachelor of Music Piano Performance. She has also organized and participated in the annual Southeastern Manitoba Festival, which takes place in Steinbach. Sawatzky was elected into the

Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame The Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum is a Canadian museum in Winnipeg, Manitoba, dedicated to honoring the history and achievements of sports in Manitoba. The organization began in 1980, and then opened a museum in The Forks in 1993. Afte ...

in 2022 and the Volleyball Canada Hall of Fame in 2024.

References

External links

Canadian Olympic Committee
1970 births Canadian Mennonites Canadian women's volleyball players Living people Manitoba Bisons players Medalists at the 1995 Pan American Games Olympic volleyball players for Canada Pan American Games bronze medalists for Canada Pan American Games bronze medalists in volleyball Sportspeople from Steinbach, Manitoba University of Manitoba alumni Volleyball players at the 1995 Pan American Games Volleyball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Volleyball players from Manitoba 20th-century Canadian sportswomen {{Canada-volleyball-bio-stub