Its a sport with that uses terms such as joust decoy and kill although it was originally devised to be played by businessmen to give them less physical contact and be more suited to their sedate lifestyle.

Volleyball was invented by William Morgan, a YMCA instructor, and the very first game was played on July 7th, 1896. Morgan combined elements of other established sports, such as baseball and basketball.

The net was based on the net used in tennis although raised to a height of just over 6 feet. A few years later, the sport had its own ball and its own name, as an observer noticed that many shots were volleys.

During the early part of the 20th century, volleyball spread quickly through not only the US, but parts of Asia, South America and the Caribbean. In 1916 the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) helped to promote the sport further and define the rules.

The first YMCA championships were held in New York in 1922 and a few years later, the sport came under the control of the newly-formed US Volleyball Association.

In 1949, the first Volleyball world championships were held in Prague, and were won by Russia at that time, European countries dominated the sport. During the same year volleyball became more widespread and popular at colleges and in 1955, volleyball was first played at the Pan American Games.

Another milestone in the sport was achieved in 1957, when it was decided to designate volleyball as an Olympic sport. The Tokyo Olympics in 1964 were the first games to feature volleyball and the ball used was made from leather paneling over a rubber carcass.

The first gold medal was won by the host country although since its introduction as an Olympic sport, Russia has won the most medals. It would be another 20 years until the US won Olympic medals for the sport Gold and Silver at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

In addition to the standard game, there is even sitting volleyball, for the disabled. And beach volleyball popular for many years - is now a recognized sport, having made its Olympic debut at the 1996 games.

Today, volleyball is one of the most popular sports in the world. Its played regularly by an estimated 800 million people worldwide ranking second only to soccer - including almost 50 million people in the US alone.

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