Diane’s Volleyball Story

     Diane’s volleyball career started at age 13 in a summer camp managed by the Popovsky Volleyball Institute at Kirkland, Washington, U.S.A. She continued her athletic growth, from 13 to 18 years of age, by combining school and club volleyball. She participated in The Washington Volleyball Academy and junior high and high school varsity volleyball, along with several university camps.

First Findings- Pedagogical Observation

The initial assessment of Diane included the following:

Pedagogical Context

Table 1.    Frame for classifying volleyball situations

     The pedagogical context for Diane’s technical volleyball development was based on the concept of the “situational technique.” [3] The content of team and individual plans was selected out of approximately 60 game situations classified into four categories for offense and defense, respectively. These eight categories were based on the position of the player on the court─front row and back row─and then according to possession of the ball.

Players were taught individual and group volleyball skills which allowed them to act successfully in any team formation based on their level of preparedness (beginner – advanced) and specialty─spiker of first & second tempo, setter and defender. To promote versatility, junior high and high school athletes practiced without specialization, specializing only during the competition phase of the volleyball season once volleyball abilities became apparent.

Summary Findings

     Diane’s goal in the last two years (1998-1999) of high school was to get ready for college volleyball and make a successful transition from high school to college sports. According to a comprehensive assessment [4, 5, 6, 7] of her constitution (age, height, type of nervous system), specific fitness conditions (speed, speed endurance, jump power, body composition) and personal disposition (attitude, motivation and technical skills efficiency), the following was discovered:

At the end of high school volleyball, Diane demonstrated a high level of leadership in all aspects of the game:

Athletic and Academic Achievements

     The main pedagogical intervention strategy employed by Popovsky her high school coach, was directed toward compensating for Diane's delay in physical maturity based on her biological age (retarded tempo). Her biological growth profile would advance athletes in gymnastics, figure skating, or swimming, but is a disturbing factor for an athlete involved in sports games [1,6]. In volleyball, it could temporarily affect offense performance [7].

For this reason, as a development strategy, Diane’s strong constitution type was emphasized. The strength of her nervous system and natural drive for exercise allowed her high school coach, to develop her extraordinary level of stamina, especially her volleyball endurance. As a result, in some five game matches, Diane made approximately 300 spikes. She set a high school league record with 49 kills. Her appropriate morphological type and excellent motor coordination, combined with her love for the game of volleyball, provided a foundation for her coach to broaden the range of her technical skills and to make her a well-rounded player, capable of playing practically every court position (spiker, setter, defense specialist). 

Diane's constitutional strength, outstanding personality, highly specific fitness conditioning and efficient technical skills compensated for her limitations and allowed her eventually to achieve a high level of high school and university athletic performance and, in addition, to become an effective person.  The following is a summary of her achievements: 

     To quote her head volleyball coach at the University of Washington (an NCAA Level 1 school), J. McLaughlin, "Di's heart is what separates her.  She works as hard as any other player I've coached.  She's got a lot of drive and has contributed to the progress we've made."[8]

Conclusions

     Today, Diane is 22. She is completely ready, biologically, to continue her impressive athletic career in either college or professional volleyball. In addition, she is sought after as a volleyball coach in her own right.

     Diane’s successful individual profile, as well as her volleyball and academic achievements, can be used as an example of how the Coaching Model for Making Individualized Decisions in Sport. This model for measuring, diagnosing, predicting, and making efficient coaching decisions about various development dimensions¾(skills formation, communication strategies, size and intensity of loads, specialties, competitive styles and others)¾can bring about athletic success for a perspective athlete.

     The program, individually designed for Diane, compensated for her limitations and allowed her not only to achieve a high level of athletic performance in volleyball, but also to become a highly effective person. She has made impressive contributions in sport, her personal relationships, her academic studies and the community.