Volleyball is one of the most popular sports team games. Translated from English, its name sounds like "hitting the ball from the summer" or "flying ball". Volleyball is played by tens of millions of people in the world due to the simplicity of the rules of this game, which does not require complex, expensive equipment. In addition, the indisputable advantage of this sport is that it is relatively safe. A volleyball player can, of course, get injured, but this happens much less often than, for example, in football or hockey.
Volleyball is played by two teams of six people, on a flat area of the agreed size, divided in the middle by a net, the upper edge of which must be fixed at a height of 243 cm for men and 224 cm for women. Purpose of the game: to give the ball to the opponent's half so that it lands within the court, or flew into touch from the hands of a player of the opposing team. Players of each team are allowed to make no more than three touches of the ball in their own half of the court (not counting the touch on the block above the net).
There are many varieties of this game. Two of them - classic volleyball and beach volleyball - are included in the list of Olympic sports.
The rules of classic volleyball have been changed several times in order to increase the entertainment of this sport, especially for a television audience, as well as to shorten the duration of matches, which sometimes stretched out for several hours, extremely tiring not only the players, but also the spectators. Currently, the rules are as follows: the game consists of five segments (games), the first four of which are played until a team reaches 25 points, and the final one - up to 15 points. It is allowed to touch the ball with any part of the body.
Of course, in order to achieve results in serious competitions, not only good teamwork of the whole team is needed, but also specific requirements: agility, jumping ability, well-developed arm muscles, without which you cannot strike the ball hard. In addition, volleyball athletes need to be tall so that they can more easily jump over the net. In teams participating in international competitions, the majority of players are taller than 200 cm.
Athletes and female athletes from the former USSR have won numerous volleyball awards at the World, European and Olympic Games. Their traditions were continued by volleyball players and volleyball players of Russia, who also repeatedly won the highest level competitions.
