An Olympic sport since Tokyo 1964,
volleyball was originally called Mintonette after William G. Morgan invented the sport at
the YMCA gymnasium of Holyoke, Massachusetts, back in 1895.
Volleyball is now one of the big five international sports and the
FIVB, with its 218 affiliated national federations, is one of the largest international
sporting federations in the world.
Add sun and sand, sexy looking sun-tanned bodies and the sport takes
on a whole new glamour; in the form of beach volleyball. The large beaches along
Copacabana are full with Brazilians playing the game almost every day; in one of the
world's most beautiful natural locations.
Beach volleyball made its first appearance at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games.
Playing outside is a nice way to get a good tan but it does make
playing 'Beach' a little more difficult; especially on a windy day.
Teams of two aside play barefoot in the sand in two Olympic events;
beach volleyball men and beach volleyball women.
Beach volleyball matches are played to the best of three sets, using
the rally point system.
The first two sets are played to 21 points and if needed, the final
tie-breaker set is played to 15 points.
As a pair must win a set by two clear points, the set can take quite a
while to finish; if the pairs are evenly matched and have plenty of stamina in the sun.
At the Olympic Games, 24 men's and 24 women's pairs enter the
competition.
Beach Volleyball Winners
Men
Atlanta 1996:
Gold - Charles Kiraly and Kent Steffes (USA)
Silver - Michael Dodd and Mike Whitmarsh (USA)
Bronze - John Child and Mark Heese (Canada)
Sydney 2000:
Gold - Dain Blanton and Eric Fonoimoana (USA)
Silver - Jose Marco Melo and Ricardo Santos (Brazil)
Bronze - Jörg Ahmann and Axel Hager (Germany)
Athens 2004:
Gold - Ricardo Santos and Emanuel Rego (Brazil)
Silver - Javier Bosma and Pablo Herrera (Spain)
Bronze - Patrick Heuscher and Stefan Kobel (Switzerland)
Women
Atlanta 1996:
Gold - Sandra Pires Tavares and Jacqueline Silva Cruz (Brazil)
Silver - Monica Rodrigues and Adriana Samuel Ramos (Brazil)
Bronze - Natalie Cook and Kerri Ann Pottharst (Australia)
Sydney 2000:
Gold - Natalie Cook and Kerri Ann Pottharst (Australia)
Silver - Adriana Behar and Shelda Bede (Brazil)
Bronze - Sandra Pires Tavares and Adriana Samuel Ramos (Brazil)
Athens 2004:
Gold - Kerri Walsh and Misty May (USA)
Silver - Adriana Behar and Shelda Bede (Brazil)
Bronze - Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs (USA)
Volleyball
12 men's teams and 12 women's teams enter the Olympic volleyball
event.
The matches are played to a best of five sets; with the first four
sets played to 25 points and the final set being played to 15 points.
Teams must win a set by two points, so play continues until someone
does.
Three-times Olympic gold medal winner, Charles
'Károly' Kiraly of the United States learned the game from his Hungarian father; who
had played the sport along the banks of the Danube and on the Californian sand.
Having won volleyball gold medals at Los
Angeles 1984 and and Seoul 1988, Kiraly followed the
double achievement with a gold medal in the first Olympic beach volleyball competition; at
the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games.
The towering presence of Cuban volleyball star, Regla Torres
helped her to three Olympic volleyball gold medals: in the Barcelona
1992, Atlanta 1996 and Sydney
2000 Olympic Games. Torres was only seventeen when she won her first Olympic gold
medal, making her the youngest volleyball gold medallist in the history of the Olympics.
In Athens 2004, Brazilian
women Adriana
Behar and Shelda Bede
became the first beach volleyball pair to earn medals in two Olympics; albeit it silver
both times.
             
       
    
FIVB:
The Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) was formed in 1946.
Volleyball - Beach Volleyball.
Confederation
Africaine de Volleyball: (CAVB).
Asian Volleyball Confederation:
(AVC).
Confederation Europeenne de Volleyball:
(CEV).
NORCECA
Volleyball Confederation:
North and Central America and Caribbean.
Confederacion
Sudamericana de Voleibol: (CSV).
National Volleyball Associations and Federations
Australian Volleyball Federation:
The peak body for the administration of the sport of volleyball in Australia.
Confederação Brasileira
de Voleibol: (Brazil).
English Volleyball
Association:
The official site for volleyball in England contains information regarding all volleyball
events and volleyball news from around the country.
USA Volleyball:
The vision of the US Volleyball Association is to be acknowledged as the world leader in
volleyball.
Volleyball Canada:
In Canada, the game became closely knit with the formation of the Canadian Volleyball
Association in 1953, with the YMCA again playing a major role.
General Volleyball Links
AVP Pro Beach Volleyball:
Event schedule, standings and statistics from the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball circuit.
Beach Volleyball Database:
Get the news and stats on volleyball.
Beach Volleyball in Germany.
US
Volleyball Associations:
Find a volleyball association by state.
Volleyball Hall of Fame:
Located in Holyoke, Massachusetts -- the birthplace of volleyball.
Volleyball in
Deutschland: (Germany).
Volleyball.
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