Volleyball

Volleyball has been around since 1895, making it 122 years old! Let's go back in time to see how it came to be a popular sport. It all started in 1895 in the United States with a man named William G. Morgan. He was an instructor at the Young Men's Christian Association, also known as the YMCA, in Holyoke, Massachusetts. In an effort to try and create a game for his classes of businessmen which would demand less physical contact then basketball, he blended together elements of basketball, baseball, tennis, and handball. Thus creating a game called mintonette, now known as volleyball. Morgan's ideas for the game was that it is fit for a gymnasium or exercise hall but, could also be played outdoor. The game consisted of any number of players that keep the ball in motion from one side to the other over a net raised 6 feet and 6 inches above the floor. The play is started by a player on one side serving the ball over the net to the opponents' court. The opponets then return the ball, in a way where it does not touch the floor, and it keeps going back and forth until one team fails to return the ball or the ball hits the floor. The side that served the ball earns the point when the opposing side fails to return the ball or lets the ball touch the ground.

During a demonstration game, someone mentions to Morgan that the players seem to be "volleying" the ball back and forth over the net, so perhaps "Volleyball" would be a more suitable and descriptive name for the sport. After reaching Japan and Asia in 1896 through the YMCA, a specially designed ball came to be about by 1900. In 1916, when volleyball was introduced in the Philippines, an offensive style of passing the ball in a high trajectory to be struck by another player (the set and spike) were introduced.Throughout 20 years, rules were set into place and by 1920 the rules mandating three hits per side and back-row attacks were created. Later, on Spetember 24, 1957 the IOC (International Olypmic Committee) recognised Volleyball as a Olympic sport. Soon after, volleyball was first played as a metal sport in the 1964 Tokyo Games.