Annie
Martin

When Annie Martin was young and imagined that she would be playing for Team Canada, she wasn’t sure if she would ever get there.  But she did and would show that dreaming big and working hard can pay off.

Annie Martin has had a storied career as a beach volleyball athlete, competing for Canada in two Olympic Games. With beach partner, Guylaine Dumont, the 22-year-old Martin finished fifth in the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, then Canada’s second-best finish at the Olympics in beach volleyball next to 1996 men’s bronze medal. It turned out that that wouldn’t be her only Olympic qualification though. Eight years later, with a new partner Marie-Andrée Lessard, Martin returned to the Olympic Games in London. This would be her final tournament with the national team, finishing 19th in the event. Annie also competed on the beach volleyball World Circuit from 2002 through to 2011.

Annie played university volleyball with Sherbrooke Vert et Or from 2002 to 2005, winning two RSEQ conference championships in 2002 and 2005 and two national championships in 2003 and again in 2005.  At the same time, she was getting her start as a beach volleyball athlete, winning a Gold medal at the London Games in 2001 and playing in her first FIVB tournament in 2002.

Domestically, Annie has five National Championships to her name; three with Hall of Fame member Guylaine Dumont in 2002, 2003 and 2004; one with Kara Zakrezewski in 2006; and one with her Olympic partner Marie-Andrée Lessard in 2009.

With her first international competition at just 20 years of age, it would be just two years later that the Lachine, Quebec native reached the ultimate stadium in sport – the 2004 Olympic Games. One of her first international tournaments was an FIVB event in Montreal.  She described the experience; “I had the opportunity to play in ones of my first international tournaments in Montreal. I remember the pride I felt playing in front of my friends and family, representing my country with Guylaine Dumont and playing against the best in the world. It was a childhood dream come to life.”

Annie has received many accolades for her accomplishments both on the indoor court and on the sand. In 2001-2002 she was named Athlete of the Year at the Université de Sherbrooke where she was also named student athlete of the year in 2001-2002 and 2004-2005. In recognition of her accomplishments, she was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame at the Université de Sherbrooke in 2013. In addition, she was inducted into the Volleyball Quebec Hall of Fame in 2015 and the Sherbrooke Hall of Fame in 2017.  In 2022, Annie was also honoured with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, awarded to honour significant contributions and achievements by Canadians.

Following her successful playing career, Martin turned her attention to coaching. She has served as the coach of the Volleyball Quebec Beach Volleyball Excellence Program from 2013 to the present and she returned to her alma mater as the head coach and co-head coach of the Vert et Or of the Université de Sherbrooke from 2018 to 2023.

We are honoured today to induct Annie Martin as an athlete in the Volleyball Canada Hall of Fame. She is most certainly deserving of this recognition for her many years as one of Canada’s most successful beach competitors as well as for an outstanding career competing for the Université de Sherbrooke.