International book international book of favorite sports_FV | Page 100

V.4 Volleyball – fun facts
(Polish team)
1. Volleyball was invented by the American William G. Morgan in 1895.
2. In Poland, the first volleyball match took place in Warsaw in 1919.
3. This sport is the most popular in Poland, Brazil, Bulgaria, Italy and Russia.
4. Since 1964, this is an Olympic discipline.
5. The rules of the game are set by FIVB (International Volleyball Federation).
6. Volleyball was invented just 10 miles from Springfield College in Springfield,
where 4 years ago basketball was invented.
7. The first World Championships were held in 1949 by men and 1952 women.
8. On average, the volleyball player jumps 300 times during the match.
9. The first specially designed volleyball ball was created in 1900.
10. This is the second most popular sport in the world, second only to football.
11. The longest volleyball match took place in Kingston (Northern California)
and lasted for 75 hours and 30 minutes.
12. Initially volleyball was called Mintonette.
13. The match lasted 9 rounds. Each of them lasted until all the players served.
14. The longest set was played in the Greek league between AEK Athens and
PAOK Thessaloniki. It lasted 54 minutes and 52 seconds.
15. Al Scates was elected the trainer of the year five times. During his 43 years
of coaching work, he has won over 1,100 wins. He is currently training UCLA
Bruins with whom he won 19 NCAA championships.
16. Polish volleyball players in 2008 got a "wild card" for the World Cup in
Japan not only because of the good game but also the beauty.
17. There is a variation of volleyball for the disabled. The matches are played
sitting.
18. Hihiro Jo Baliska from Thailand is the lowest professional volleyball player.
It is only 163 cm tall.
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