The story behind Apex

Club History

Apex Volleyball Club

In the summer of 2004, the Vertical Limit Volleyball Club merged with the Paranoia Volleyball Club to form what is now Vancouver’s largest youth volleyball club under the name of Apex.

5 teams competed in Volleyball BC events in our inaugural season in 2005. A year later, we were able to field 9 teams for the 2006 season, of which 5 teams competed at the 17U/18U National Championships (Abbotsford), and 1 at the 14U Western Canadian Open (Saskatoon), Apex’s first foray into Volleyball Canada National Championships.

Our program now branches from its roots in East Vancouver to all across Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, and the North Shore, and some of our coaches are affiliated with college and university teams in the Lower Mainland. We’ve had athletes join us from their homes in Whistler, the Sunshine Coast, and the Fraser Valley.

Our 5th season in 2010 season was a banner year, involving over 220 club members and 16 teams, making us the 4th largest club in BC. Eleven teams participated in national championship tournaments bringing home four medals, and club co-founder and president Ken Li was awarded the 2010 Community Sports Administrator of the Year by Volleyball BC.

Since then, we’ve experienced growth every single year (with the exception of the COVID years). We’ve amassed provincial championships and other podium finishes, and top 5 finishes at the 15U (2026), 16U (2024, 2026), 17U (2025), and 18U (2016, 2026) Boys national championships. We’ve implemented training opportunities in the summer and fall, outside the club volleyball season, both indoors and out, with plans to grow the game even more. Our club continues to grow and every year brings new athletes, new coaches, new goals, and new accomplishments to celebrate.

In 2025, the club celebrated our 20th anniversary season. This milestone was celebrated with alumni events that brought our community that shares a love of volleyball back together.

The 2026 season was our largest to date, with 24 club teams, development programs in all 4 seasons, and a club membership of over 330 club athletes and 70 staff (not including development programs).

Our club aims to provide quality training and preparation for competition for enthusiastic volleyball players, to promote lifelong physical activity, and to help mold these young adults into responsible, hard-working, motivated, and self-confident leaders and team players through the sport. We strive to create a strong community of members under the Apex name.

The Apex staff are all dedicated to the sport of volleyball and volunteer their time for the benefit of the athletes. Our coaches are all experienced players and have undergone training in the National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP). All our coaches adhere to the Volleyball BC Coaches Code of Conduct and undergo Criminal Record Checks and Safe Sport Canada training.

OUR MISSION

Fostering leaders in our volleyball community by valuing teamwork, discipline and confidence in a positive, inclusive environment.

OUR VISION

Inspiring our community to grow their passion for volleyball and help guide development both on and off the court.

THE CANADIAN SPORT HELPLINE 1-888-837-7678 – info@abuse-free-sport.ca – abuse-free-sport.ca/en/ The helpline will provide you with advice, guidance and resources on how to proceed/intervene appropriately in the circumstances.

Paranoia Storyline

Paranoia Volleyball Club, a group of U17 boys from Van Tech, Templeton, and Alpha Secondary Schools forming a single team was established.

Now in their final year, Paranoia competes in the BCVA U18 Tier 2 Provincial Championships and wins the gold medal.

All main core players graduated. Paranoia fielded no team for 2003.

Ken Li, Aaron Lock, and Allen Tsang, the coaches of a Van Tech boys team, finished the season with a disappointing loss and were asked by team members to start a club team for more training. Fueled by their determination to achieve more success and develop boys volleyball in Vancouver, the choice to resurrect Paranoia was a simple one to make.

Vertical Limit Storyline

The Vertical Limit Volleyball Club was created in 2002 by Wing Chan, the coach of the Gladstone Secondary Juvenile Girls team, which placed second in Vancouver.

Vertical Limit was unfortunately dismantled as all the tournament play and club activities were taking their toll. The Vertical Limit Volleyball Club was replaced and the players were coached under the well-established Sting Volleyball Club with new coaches Chanh Vuong and Simon Li.

As fate would have it, the next year saw the rise of Vertical Limit once again. With the emergence of great coaches such as Chanh Vuong, Clara Lee (now Clara Vuong), Simon Li, Tony Wong, and Edmond Ma, a push was made to resurrect the club that was lost only a year ago. Thanks to the effort of all of the coaches and players, the Vertical Limit Volleyball Club was born again fielding two U16 teams and one U15 team and was now serving all willing players not only from Gladstone Secondary but in the whole Vancouver district.