| In just twenty years’ time, volleyball has evolved from
a fast paced sport to an even faster one displaying keen strategy and
extraordinary athleticism. One cannot help but wonder how much further it
will develop, and what the international body governing this sport (the
FIVB) will do to either go along with its evolution, or
curtail its speedy metamorphosis. In this section I will give an overview
of the trends that have been set at the international level, the teams
that set them, and the rules that have changed to follow or to limit
certain aspects of these trends.
Before the ‘80s, there were two major world powers in this sport: the Soviet Union and Japan. The former was a typical example of power volleyball, where sheer physical size was the dominant factor; the latter used the opposite—quicker plays in order to outpace their physically bigger European opponents. These two teams battled it out during most of the Cold War, with the USSR winning more titles, but with Japan injecting exciting new elements into the sport that have now become basic vocabulary. Two examples of Japanese innovation are the “one” [or “short”] ball and the defensive technique of rolling on the floor when attempting to save a ball (this continues the motion of the body after retrieving the ball, preventing brusque, sudden movements which can lead to injury). |
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Japan and Peru during the '82 World's quarterfinal. Peru surprised everyone by pulling an upset over this traditional Asian power. Back then, volleyball was simpler and slower, with the Asian school always at the vanguard of speedy plays. Here, Peru's Cecilia Tait and Aurora Heredia put a block on the Japanese attack. Notice that Heredia—one of Peru's two setters—played the middle position, a system that Peru used until 1991. | The new decade of the ‘80s started with Cuba as the reigning World Champion (winner in Leningrad ‘78). The Caribbean team adopted the Soviet style of play, mainly because Cuban women are as strong and as tall as their Soviet counterparts, and also because the people who brought volleyball to Cuba were Soviet coaches. There was no need for Cuba to play Asian-style because their physical power worked very effectively. |
| However, at the ‘81 World Cup in Japan, a surprise
team took home the title: China. In a thrilling 3-2 victory over the host
team, China demonstrated that not only did they play with the quickness of
the Asian school, but they also had the power to terminate with
unstoppable kills, most of which came from the best player of all times, Lang Ping.
China's success has always come from the balance in their game, combining
both speed and power without relying exclusively on any one. Japan, on one
hand, lies at one end of the spectrum with their swift and witty plays;
Cuba and the USSR, on the other hand, don't run intricate offences because
they rely mainly on force. Thus, the beauty of watching China play has
been—and still is—to see it matched against faster but weaker Asian
opponents, in which China overpowers them with physical strength. Then, to
see China play the stronger European and American teams is quite
entertaining as they surprise them with their quicker offence.
It was this formula which served China so well at the World Cup in ‘81, and then one year later, at the ‘82 World Championships in Peru, where China absolutely outpaced and overpowered everyone in their way. Sun Jinfang, China's setter at the time, ran a fast offence for early ‘80s standards; mainly, a “one” or “shoot” to her middle hitters, with the option of shooting the ball even farther outside to Lang Ping or Zhang Rongfang. She also ran “cross plays” in which opposite hitter Zheng Meizhu came to hit a “two” [or “medium”] ball behind a “one” fake by the middle hitter. This was the basis of China's offence, (which now might seem a bit pre-historic) but it served wonders in ‘82, at the Olympics in Los Angeles, and at the ‘86 World Championships in Czechoslovakia. China, therefore, raised the standard in favour of more quickness and strategy in volleyball, which motivated some teams to step up their levels by emulating the Chinese. |
| At the ‘84 Olympics, China dominated the competition in much the same way as it had done in Peru ‘82. Sun Jinfang had given way to a younger and better setter, Yang Xilan, who guided China to a 3-0 final over the USA. The host team played with a style that wasn't as rigid and power-based as Cuba's or the USSR's, but was still reliant on their mighty outside hitter Flo Hyman and their tall middle blockers, Rose Magers and Paula Weishoff. But China's offence found another way to confuse their opponent's blockers: Yang Xilan began running an almost perpendicular shoot to the middle when she was away from the net, where Yang Xiaojun and especially Liang Yan with their very quick arm-swings would put the ball down in a blitz. In this way, China continued running a quick offence regardless of the accuracy of their serve reception (which for the most part, was flawless). |  The coolness emanating from Chinese eyes... At the Los Angeles Olympics, China was determined to win the gold. After losing to the USA in pool play, the Chinese pulled their act together and won the tournament convincingly. In the final against the USA the line-up included (from left to right) : Lang Ping, Yang Xiaojun, Liang Yan, Yang Xilan, Zhang Rongfang, and Zheng Meizhu. This spectacular team made the first half of the '80s their "Golden Age". |
| This overwhelming success made most of the
world's teams observe China very closely at the ‘85 World Cup, which it
also won. Entering the second half of the decade, other non-traditional
teams began improving noticeably. Among these emerging powers were Peru,
Brazil, and East Germany (DDR).
Peru was the only team in the top 10 that still used its setter as a middle blocker. Most other teams had stopped doing this because the absence of a regular middle hit undermined the offence (it gave the two wing hitters a higher chance of facing a strong double block). But Peruvian setter Rosa García played the middle position throughout the remainder of the 80s without jeopardising the team's offence. Surprisingly, the main addition to Peru's line-up at the '86 World's was Gabriela Pérez del Solar, who at 1.94m was the tallest player in the world at the time (at this level of play). With Gaby's height, Peru gained in blocking and could run the quick middle hit with almost as much efficacy as China's “perpendicular shoot”. |
 The '85 World Cup in Japan was another demonstration of Chinese superiority. Here Cuba's Mireya Luis pounds a cross-court hit at the Chinese, but China took the match. The final standings were: China, Cuba, the USSR, Japan, Peru, Brazil, Korea, and Tunisia. |
Brazil also improved its game by running a lot of sneaky middle hits, though their players weren't as tall as Gaby or as quick as the Chinese. Setter Ana Maria Richa played a lot with her offence, and for the most part, they did really well, especially with the outstanding contributions of outside hitter Isabel Salgado, who was a real joy to watch. |
| East Germany also elevated its game by running quicker “one” balls with Heike Jensen. The Germans, though, began using a play that China's Zheng Meizhu and Yang Xiaojun used sparingly since ‘84: the “slide”. This play has now become one of the favourite hits in women's volleyball: a one-legged take-off from the middle to position 2, hitting a parabola of varying speed and height. The advantage of the “slide” is that it puts the opposing middle blocker in a difficult position. If the pass is perfect, the setter can open the wings by setting either a shoot to the outside or a slide behind her; in any case, the middle blocker will almost always be late. So the slide as the DDR's Jensen and Ariane Radfan ran it was very effective. At times, Peru's left-handed Cecilia Tait would run an “inward slide”, coming from behind the setter and hitting in front of her, but this wasn't a regular play. Still, of all the players, Zheng Meizhu was the one who excelled at this attack (as if China needed any further improvement in their offence). |
| Cuba and China met in the final of the ‘86 World's, displaying the two traditional styles of volleyball that have polarised the international scene. In the end, China's quickness prevailed in a 3-1 victory that also showed Cuba's clumsiness and lack of basic technical mastery. At that level, such silly mistakes are inexcusable, but somehow Cuban teams have never felt the need to polish their game, forsaking perfection for results. Nevertheless, Cuba took the third set from China (one of only two lost in the whole tournament), but in the fourth, Chinese wits were too much for Cuba, who had an especially hard time blocking the Chinese wing hitters. More often than not, Jiang Ying, Hou Yuzhu, and Zheng Meizhu would tool the outside blockers with ease. With Lang Ping and Zhang Rongfang contributing as coaches, China was unbeatable in every way and took home its second consecutive world title. |  In 1985, the FIVB held two Gala Matches between the Chinese Olympic champions and a team of World All-Stars. Among the world's top players (here in blue) were Cuba's Mireya Luis and Josefina Capote, the USSR's Yelena Chebukina and Y. Kachalova, Japan's Norie Hiro and Kumi Nakada, Peru's Cecilia Tait, the USA's Rose Magers, and others. China (in red) won both matches, proving that not even a team with the best of the rest were strong enough to dethrone the Chinese, even at an exhibition match! |
| In 1987, the FIVB began experimenting with some rule
changes, mainly to make volleyball easier to televise. For example,
players couldn't call the floor wipers to come in after every rally,
delaying the game and slowing the opposing team's momentum. At the ‘87
Japan Cup, the “rally-point” method was tried in which every side-out
was a point, regardless of who served. The games were played to 30, with a
two-point difference still necessary. But even if “rally scoring” made
the game flashier, 30 points seemed to drag on for an eternity. The idea
was temporarily discarded and not revived until 1989, when it was
implemented only for the tie-breaking fifth set, and then only to 15
points. Another major addition that began in ‘87 was the use of back-row
hitting by the Soviet hitter Irina Smirnova. Other hitters had also hit
from the back-row before, like China's Lang Ping, Peru's Cecilia Tait and
Bulgaria's Kiosseva, but they weren't regular elements of the team's
offence, but rather a means to get out of a troublesome rotation. Smirnova
on the other hand, could always be counted on by setter Irina Parkhomchuk
to be ready from the back row. Thus, another element was added to the
ever-growing repertoire of offensive weapons in this sport.
By the time Korea hosted the Olympics in 1988, the sport of volleyball had gotten a bit more complex since Los Angeles. First of all, there were more matches going to five games, which meant that team levels weren't as disparate as before. China was no longer the sole authority in the sport, the USSR and Japan had both regained their lost ground, the Peruvians were at the peak of their maturity, and other teams like Brazil, the USA, and the DDR, though not making it into the final round, put up good fights against the other teams. Absent from this Olympic meet was Cuba, whose government announced a boycott in solidarity with North Korea. Cuba would've brought more power to this competition, but with the Soviets present, power was already well represented at the 24th Olympiad. Japan brought a lot of trademark wittiness to Seoul. First of all, Sachiko Fujita's absolutely spectacular roundhouse serve raised several brows at the Games. Norie Hiro and veteran Yumi Maruyama both perfected the “self-faking” hit, in which they would take an approach as if to hit a quick “one”, wait a beat until the blockers came down, and then go up to hit a “two” ball with no mercy. Of course, a lot of credit should go to Kumi Nakada, who knew exactly when to set which play without ruining her hitter's approach. Rookie Motoko Ohbayashi, who would later become the pillar of the Japanese team in the 90s, ran an “inward” slide on the left side in a combination play, which made it much more effective. In the middle of a rally, she would come from behind the middle hitter and hit a perfectly set ball with her whiplash left arm. Again, Nakada deserves recognition for this play, for an almost telepathic communication was needed between her and Ohbayashi. Finally, Norie Hiro's slides on the right side added even more firepower, so that when Nakada had three hitters in her front line, she had a whole series of combinations that would drive the opponents' blockers crazy. |
 A scene from the exciting '88 Olympic final between Peru and the USSR: Ogienko hits a slide down the line over Gina Torrealva. After more than two hours of playing time, the Soviets snatched the gold away from the Peruvians, who were too nervous to capitalise on the crucial points of the game. However, the whole country celebrated when their silver-medalling heroes returned to Peru, for their's had been a feat unequalled before in the history of Peruvian sport. |
Japan set the standard in quickness, but China was not far behind. With Wu Dan and Li Yueming as the new complements to a well-seasoned core team, China gained in height and blocking. Wu Dan hit better slides than Norie Hiro, and experienced Yang Xilan could set the ball and find the taller Li Yueming almost anywhere in the air. The older players, Jiang Ying, Yang Xiaojun, and Hou Yuzhu played as well as they ever had, but the difference between their success before and their experience in 1988 was that the rest of the world had caught up. |
| Peru, a
team that China used to beat with ease in the early ‘80s, was now an
experienced team. There was more to Peru in their gutsy plays and
perseverance than in their technical level, making Peru the crowd
favourite because of their incredible come-from-behind victories and their
shrieking digs. Korean coach Man Bok Park still kept the setter in the
middle position, and not much had changed in the offence since they won
the ‘87 Japan Cup, except for the return of lefty Cecilia Tait, who was
regaining her level after a series of knee injuries. Man Bok Park had
taken his team through years of hard work and constant tours, mainly
throughout Eastern Europe in order to familiarise his players with the
style of power volleyball. In this way, Peru's mixed Asian-European style
of play gave the audience many vibrant matches, which, as a
middle-of-the-road team, made volleyball all the more exciting to watch.
One never knew which Peru—the faster or the stronger—would appear.
Finally, there was the USSR, a team that was a bit younger than Peru but with a setter in Irina Parkhomchuk who was very comfortable with her hitters. The best thing for her was that they were all very dependable. Valentina Ogienko hit the quick slide, the “one”, the quick shoot, and at times ran her own “self-fake” play on both sides of the setter. Smirnova and Sidorenko added the power component of the offence, with the former especially dazzling from the back-row. Even tall and rigid Yelena Ovtchinnikova (Chebukina), ran the shoots, both in the middle and on the outside, with solid results. What the Soviets lacked were fast transitions, making their high blocking vulnerable to faster offences. Seoul hosted what were probably the best recent Olympic Games in terms of close competition. Most of the teams were very equal in level, and the matches (especially the final) were gut-wrenching. The gold medal was decided between the strong European school of the USSR versus the combined Asian/European fusion of the gutsy Peruvians. Five sets were played to pronounce the Olympic champion, and in the end, technical skill beat out raw emotion as the Soviets edged out the Peruvians by 17 to 15. But just as Seoul saw the beginning of a new (albeit brief) era of Soviet glory, it also marked the end of China's golden age. Against the two finalists, China's once unbeatable offence proved weak. In pool play Peru rallied from 9-14 to win at the tiebreak, and the USSR absolutely crushed China 3-0 in the semifinal, with one embarrassing score of 15-1. Such demoralising losses ended Chinese hegemony, because ever since then China hasn't won any of the major international tournaments (save the ‘88 Super Four and the ‘96 Super Challenge). Unfortunately for volleyball (at least I think of it this way), China's defeat brought about the end of a wonderful era for the Asian school of volleyball, giving way instead to the power-based school of Eastern Europe, exemplified strangely enough, by the Cubans. China might have made several tournament finals after Seoul (the ‘96 Olympics and the ‘90 and ‘98 World's) but never managed to win them.
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