Friday, April 17, 1998
By Kathryn Bender, Star-Bulletin
Sivan Leoni attacks volleyball and
photography with the same zest.
Picture Perfect
Pursuing volleyball and
By Cindy Luis
photography is a dream come true
for UH's Leoni
Star-BulletinPICTURE this. Sivan Leoni has.
With and without a camera, his mind clicks off frames of ideas that sometimes find their way to his photo lab for processing.
Gregarious and always entertaining on the court, Leoni will share another part of his life -- his love of photography -- during tomorrow's Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament first-round playoff match.
Some 150 pictures of his four-year experience as a University of Hawaii volleyball player will be on display on the outer concourse at the Stan Sheriff Center just mauka of the Roin-Bow-Tique shop.
"It's been an ongoing project and I've piled up many rolls of film," said Leoni, a senior blocker for the fourth-ranked Rainbows, who face UC Santa Barbara tomorrow at 7 p.m. "I want to show the people of Hawaii something beyond what they see on the news, what they read in the newspapers. I want to show something that goes deeper into the players' lives."
These are more than home movies. Leoni captures the everyday life of Rainbow volleyball, and in many ways, the essence of what has made Hawaii the most popular program in the country.
There's a section on the road trips from the past four years done in scrapbook style. It's a personal documentary that reveals so much of Leoni's personality: outwardly outrageous with a reflective soul.
By Sivan Leoni, special to the Star-Bulletin
This is one of Sivan Leoni's photos featuring the
UH volleyball team in the locker room.
"This is my way to thank the fans," Leoni said. "Many people would say that playing is enough for them. For me, this is what I do."Leoni's playing time has been limited with the dominating emergence of two new teammates -- 6-foot-9 Andre Breuer and 6-7 Dejan Miladinovic. Still, the fans haven't forgotten the 6-5 Leoni, or his trademark grunt during service.
The grunt-along turned into an ovation when Leoni nailed his 100th career ace Saturday night. It tied him with former teammate and fellow Israeli Yuval Katz for the school record.
"When the crowd does that for me it adds to the motivation of getting an ace," said Leoni, who is eighth in hitting percentage (.410) in the MPSF. "I can't hear it because it comes during the part when I'm concentrating the most. But I love whatever they do, and the more they do, the more they are directly involved in me."
While not happy to be on the bench, Leoni has no regrets about moving to Hawaii four years ago. It is home. It is his life.
He found love and freedom all in one place. Leoni married the former Paula Bruhn last year and lives in Kailua.
Special to the Star-Bulletin
Sivan Leoni with his wife, local girl Paula Bruhn-Leoni,
and her son, Shawn AhMow, 12.
Paula's son, Shawn, turns 13 on May 1. That's the day in between the NCAA Tournament semifinals and championship, which will be held at the Sheriff Center.Leoni knows what would be the perfect birthday present.
"I hope people will be able to remember us as those guys who won the championship," Leoni said. "That Sivan and Naveh (senior captain Naveh Milo) helped Hawaii win the championship.
"As for how they remember my individual contributions, people should remember the fun I had on the court."
Leoni plans to stay in Hawaii and go into business with Milo. Commercial photography will be a part of it.
"All I can say is since I came here, I am fulfilled and life can't be any better," Leoni said. "Six years ago, I wanted to win the world championship (in volleyball). But by coming here, I got something better than the world championship.
"Never in my wildest dreams did I think all of this was possible. And I have some wild dreams."
A picture is worth a thousand words. Tomorrow, Leoni tells his story.
Making a career of it
Sivan Leoni is among the career leaders in several statistical categories at UH:
Aces: 100 (T1)
http://uhathletics.hawaii.edu
