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Volleyball, which was originally called Mintonette, was created by William G. Morgan in 1895. William Morgan was an instructor for fitness at the YMCA in Holyoke, Massachusetts. He invented the game to try to help all kinds of people exercise more. |
| He took the net from a tennis court and put it up above his head. Later, a Springfield College Professor came to watch the game and suggested to change the name to volleyball because the ball was "volleyed". |
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The game of volleyball is played on a rectangular court that is 59 feet long and 29.5 feet wide. The net (3 feet tall and 32 feet wide) is directly in the center of the court. The two attack lines are 9.8 feet away from each side of the net. |
| The official game has 6 players per side (3 at the net and 3 in back court). The server can serve from any place just so it is behind the team's end line. Every time a team gets the ball, they rotate clockwise. |
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The volleyball is the most important part of the game in my opinion. Without the ball you would have no game. William Morgan's version used a basketball first then realized it was too hard. So he decided to use the bladder of a basketball because it was light and soft. |
| The official volleyball today is an off white color and is 25 to 26 inches in circumferences. The balls weigh about 9 or 10 pounds. Volleyballs come in synthetic leather or vinal. |
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The volleyball player's uniform and equipment is not very complicated. Competitive volleyball players wear uniforms. Uniform consist of a comfortable shirt and shorts. A player's shoes are court shoes with supports. They usually have rubber soles on the shoes. |
| Almost all players wear knee pads. Knee pads are worn because players usually dive and fall on their knees. Knee pads help save your knees. |
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