Home :London Olympics 2012: Beach Volleyball

Beach Volleyball - London Olympics 2012

Key facts

Venue: Horse Guards Parade
Dates: Saturday 28 July – Thursday 9 August
Medal events: 2
Athletes: 96 (48 men, 48 women; 24 teams in each event)

Beach Volleyball came of age on the sun-soaked beaches of Santa Monica, California, during the 1920s. The event now regarded as the first Beach Volleyball World Championships was held in the state in 1976, and was even won by a pair of Californians (Greg Lee and Jim Menges). However, over the last three decades, the sport has moved far beyond its West Coast roots and is now played all over the world.

Did you know?

In the 1960s, The Beatles appeared at the legendary Sorrento Beach in Los Angeles for a quick hit on the beach volleyball court.

A volleyball weighs between 260g and 280g and is made of synthetic leather

The first Beach Volleyball circuit began in the 1950s with hundreds of athletes playing on beaches in California.

The United States has won five of the eight Olympic gold medals awarded since the sport’s introduction to the Games in 1996.

The basics

Beach Volleyball is similar to the indoor game, which also features on the Olympic programme, but with two main differences. The court, which measures 16 x 8 metres, is covered in sand and situated outdoors; and the game is played by teams of two, instead of teams of six.

The object of the sport is to land the ball in the opposition’s half of the court. After the serve, each team is allowed three touches of the ball before it must cross over the net – set at a height of 2.43m for men and 2.24m for women – to the opposition. Matches are the best of three sets, with 21 points needed to win a set (15 in the third and deciding set).

At London 2012, both the men’s and women’s Beach Volleyball events will begin with a preliminary phase: the 24 teams in each event will be divided into six pools of four, and each team will play every other team in their pool. A total of 16 teams from this phase will qualify for the knockout phase, with the winners of the semi-finals eventually going head-to-head for the gold.

Olympic Beach Volleyball, past and present
Beach Volleyball made its Olympic debut at Atlanta 1996. Since then it has become one of the most popular spectator sports at the Games. The London 2012 competition will be held at a special temporary arena on Horse Guards Parade, just steps from Trafalgar Square, which will be covered in 3,000 tonnes of sand.

Jargon buster
Block: Preventing the ball from coming over the net by forming a wall of hands at the net.
Dig: A defensive passing shot from close to the ground, usually following an opposition spike.
Setter: The player who ‘sets’ the ball for the attacker, usually on the second of the team’s three permitted shots.
Spike: To smash the ball overarm into the opposition’s court.
Wipe: To return the ball off an opposing block so it lands out of bounds.

Get involved
The website of the International Volleyball Federation contains plenty of information about the sport. If you want to get started, try the website of the Volleyball federations in Britain, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.