Rules of Volleyball

Two teams of six players each play volleyball on a court. Due to the similarities between the game and the sport of badminton, the name "Mintonette" was given to it at first. A net separates the two teams of six players in the team sport of volleyball. Under set rules, each side attempts to score points by putting the ball on the court of the other team. Since Tokyo 1964, it has been a part of the official Olympic Summer Games schedule. The Atlanta 1996 Summer Olympics saw the introduction of beach volleyball to the Olympic schedule. Sitting volleyball is the modified variation of volleyball played at the summer paralympics. Although the full set of rules is lengthy, the basic flow of play is as follows: a player on one of the teams starts a 'rally' by serving the ball, which is done by tossing or releasing it and then hitting it with a hand or arm from behind the back boundary line of the court, over the net, and into the receiving team's court. The receiving team must prevent the ball from touching the ground inside their own court. To return the ball to the other side of the court, the team may touch it up to three times, but no single player may touch it twice in a row. Usually, an attack is established up with the first two touches. An attack is a deliberate attempt to return the ball over the net in such a way that the team receiving it is unable to pass the ball and continue the rally, losing the point. A point is awarded to the team that wins the rally, and they serve the ball to begin the following one.