Paralympics NZ

Volleyball NZ

Sitting volleyball is one of the most dynamic Paralympic sports. It was developed in the Netherlands during the 1950s from a combination of athletics and sitzball, a German sport which is played sitting down.

Sitting volleyball is very similar to volleyball in terms of basic rules and scoring, but the net is lower and the court smaller. There are six players on a team. The object of the game is to land the ball in the other team's half of the court. Each team can touch the ball three times before it must cross the net.

As the name suggests, all athletes must play seated. Players' legs can contact opposite team members' legs, but must not hinder play. Athletes must maintain contact with the ground during all actions, except when moving about the court.

Sitting volleyball grew steadily in popularity, becoming a Paralympic sport in 1980 for men. Women's competitions joined the programme at the 2004 Athens Games.

It is played by athletes with various impairments, including amputees, locomotor disabilities, permanent knee, hip and ankle injuries, cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries and polio.