Julie Vanloo has been on an emotional roller coaster over the past few days. Just two days ago, the veteran became the EuroBasket champion with the Belgium national team. Right after the victory, she was set to come back to play for the WNBA side, San Francisco Valkyries.
However, upon returning to the Bay Area, she received crushing news. The team no longer needed her services, and her contract had been waived. Happiness was gone too soon, that too after an 18-hour-long flight.
Julie Vanloo Pens Emotion Message Following Departure From Valkyries
After becoming the EuroBasket champion, Vanloo had to take an 18-hour flight to get back to San Francisco. Upon hearing the news of being waived, the Belgian took her time and took to Instagram to express her feelings.
In a lengthy Instagram post, Julie Vanloo revealed that she had left the fan ceremony to be there with the Valkyries. She captioned:
“After traveling 18 hours back to the Bay, I missed the fan ceremony and the chance to share that special medal moment with my family and friends. I got back to San Fran as soon as I could. I left the party in the middle of the night after the game… To hear 1 hour upon arrival: we have to waive you.”
Vanloo certainly felt the weight of the world crushing down on her shoulders. However, she tried to remain as gracious as she could and did not forget to thank the team and her teammates. She added:
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“Thank you, Golden State Valkyries, for the opportunity. I’m not going to sit here and be sour, that’s just not who I am. To my Valkyries teammates — I have tears in my eyes writing this. This team is filled with incredible, beautiful souls. Each of you has a place in my heart. I’ll carry this experience with me, always,” Vanlo added.
As her chapter with the San Francisco Valkyries comes to an end, it will be interesting to see where she heads next.
Valkyries Head Coach Defends Julie Vanloo’s Contract Waiver
There have been a lot of discussions about Vanloo being released. While the release itself isn’t a topic of discussion, how the team went about it certainly is. Speaking about the same, Valkyries’ head coach defended the decision to have Vanloo come all the way back before breaking the news to her.
From my perspective, I would say that was respectful because whenever a situation like that happens, you bring them in and, as an adult, you say things face to face,” Natalie Nakase said (via Men’s Journal).
It is certainly a bold move from the head coach, especially after Vanloo had to leave the Team Belgium celebration early to fly all the way to join the WNBA side and be cut.
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