Volleyball Basics

Factfile

• Volleyball is the world's 2nd most popular sport with an estimated 1bn players
• There are 69,000 adult players in England and 82,000 11-15s
• London has over 12,000 adult players
• Volleyball attracts a high proportion of graduates
• Current Olympic champions are USA (men) and Brazil (women)

History
Volleyball was originally created in 1895 by William G Morgan at the WMCA in Holyoke, Massachusetts .  Morgan, director of Physical Education at the "Y", was inspired to create the game (which he called Mintonette) by watching Basketball, which had been created four years earlier by John Naismith, a fellow Springfield College alumni.  Morgan wanted a game that could be played by any number of players but was gentler than basketball allowing the YMCA's older members to participate.  How things have changed!

An observer at the first exhibition match a year later commented on the game's volleying nature and hence the modern name of "volleyball" was born.

Basics

Two teams of six each inhabit one half of a playing area measuring 18m by 9m.  This area is bisected by a net which creates two courts of 9m square.  Each team essentially has three touches to return the ball to their opponents count without the ball touching the floor - being grounded.  The original game involved teams volleying the ball over the net as soon as they could, only using three touches when they had to.

The modern game has specialists players who combine to use all three touches so that they can attempt to hit the ball into their opponents court with maximum power to increase the chance of it being grounded.  In the men's game, the net stands at a height of 2.43m (almost 8ft) and in the women's game it stands at 2.24m ( just over 7ft 4in).

Areas of the court are numbered starting at 1, which is at the back (furthest from the net), right hand side; 2, which is front right; 3, front middle; 4, front left; 5, back left and 6, back middle.  The players at positions 2, 3 & 4 are referred to as front court players and those at 1, 6 & 5 as back court players.

Volleyball players are generally tall with male internationals often being over 1.98m (6ft 6in) and women over 1.8m (6ft).  Because of their importance in blocking, the middle front court players (the middle attacker/blocker) are generally the tallest.

The setter (historically shorter though this is changing) are the play-makers responsible for feeding the ball to the player best placed to deliver the ball to the opponents court with maximum power avoiding the defensive team's block.  The outsider attackers generally work at position 4 in front court  and the opposite attacker will general specialise at position 2 in front court.

The recently introduced libero position has meant that shorter athletes can play at the game's highest levels.  Liberos play only in back court and can swap on for any player at position 1, 6 or 5, as long as long as that player is not required to serve.  The libero's purpose is to be a defensive specialists.