Team Sports

opposing teams which compete to win. Team members act together towards a shared objective.

and the various forms of association football, doubles tennis, and hockey.

of the game. The sport began as a fun activity at Santa Monica, California, in the 1920s. From there it developed into a competitive sport in the 1950s and 60s and really took off in the late 1970s after becoming professional.

The sport really come of age when it became an official sport at the Olympic Games. It was first introduced at the 1992 Games in Barcelona as a demonstration sport, and was a new addition as an official sport at the Olympic Games in Atlanta in 1996.

game. When at the beach all you need is a net and a ball. While the competitive game is played with only two players per side, a friendly game on the beach can have many more, and should have too otherwise it is a very strenuous game.

Beach volleyball has also become a popular organized social sport, with indoor and outdoor sand courts being set up, some with netting around the outside which keeps the ball in play.

not suit all successful players of the indoor game.

The players must have outstanding ball skills and court speed, but they must also be able to handle the many difficulties of playing outdoors, such as the soft unstable sand, the environmental effects such as the sun and wind. Partners must be well matched or opponents will win easy points by exploiting the weaker player.

very strenuous game. To train for beach volleyball, athletes must spend a lot of time developing their lower body strength so they can move quickly and accurately across the ground, despite the friction and resistance of the sand.

While powerful legs are an important part of successful volleyball play, the ability to jump high and hard and land without injury are substantially more vital in beach volleyball than in court volleyball.