10. 2. 2022
Happy birthday volleyball!
In the winter on 9.February 1895, in Holyoke, Massachusetts (United States), William G. Morgan, a YMCA physical education director, created a new game called Mintonette, a name derived from the game of badminton, as a pastime to be played (preferably) indoors and by any number of players.
The game took some of its characteristics from other sports such as baseball, tennis and handball. Another indoor sport, basketball, was catching on in the area, having been invented just ten miles (sixteen kilometres) away in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts, only four years before. Mintonette was designed to be an indoor sport, less rough than basketball, for older members of the YMCA, while still requiring a bit of athletic effort.The original name “mintonette” was renamed volley the ball in 1896 when the new game was introduced to the directors of the YMCA (Young Mens Christian Association).
