Volleyball dates to 1895 when a YMCA instructor had the idea of combining several sports into one game. As the game grew in popularity, the original rules were gradually changed and they have since evolved into the competitive sport as you know it today. Indoor and beach volleyball are now Olympic sports.
Creator
Volleyball was created by William Morgan at a YMCA in Massachusetts. His intention was to combine basketball, baseball, tennis and handball into a one game that involved less physical contact than basketball. Because the game consisted of volleying a ball back and forth over a net, the original name was changed from mintonette to volleyball. In 1896, the first formal game of volleyball was played at Springfield College.
Game Evolution
The original rules allowed for any number of players, a net height of six and a half feet and as many hits as needed to get the ball over the net. The length of the game was set at nine innings with teams each getting three serves per inning. Through the 1900s, the net height gradually increased to 8 feet, hits were limited to three per side and games became 15 points in length.
First Olympics
Volleyball was first introduced as an Olympic sport in 1964 in Tokyo. The game had grown in popularity around the world decades before this time. It was the first team sport for women to be added in the Olympic games and was a popular sport among women particularly in Japan. The U.S. did not win a medal in volleyball in those first games, but has in every Olympics since 1984.
Beach Volleyball
Beach volleyball first appeared in Santa Monica, California, in the 1920s as a family activity. In 1930, the first two-man beach volleyball game paved the way for many two-man games and tournaments in the decades to come in California and around the world. The establishment of the California Beach Volleyball Association in 1965 helped formalize rules and schedules for commercially sponsored tournaments. In 1993, the International Olympic Committee permitted beach volleyball as a medal sport.
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