Introduction: There are gender related performance characteristics in men and women`s volleyball games. Volleyball coaches adopt different training programs and game tactics when coaching volleyball teams of different genders. However, few studies have examined the performance difference between men and women`s volleyball games. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to examine the gender difference of the performance of the scoring skills in high level volleyball games. Methods: One hundred and eight games fromthe Women`s World Grand Prix final round and eighty eight games from the Men`s World League final roundbetween 2007 and 2013 were analyzed. The officialmatch statistics of FIVB P3 reports from these matches were retrieved through the FIVB website. Performance ratio (score, fault, and continue) for services, spikes, and blocks were calculated for statistical analyses. Independent t tests and paired t tests were used to examine the gender effect and the effect of game result, respectively. Results: The scoring ratiowas higher for menthan women in spikes, whereas women were higher than men in blocks. Men were higher than women for the fault ratio in all 3 skills, but women were higher than men for the ratio of continue. The winning teams had the higher scoring ratio compared to the losing teams for both men and women, but only the winning teams of the women`s games had the lower ratio of fault than the losing teams. Discussion: The results show that there are gender differences in the performance of spikes, blocks, and services in high level volleyball games. The higher ratio of scoring and fault for men in spikes indicates that men`s volleyball games tend to score in just a short rally. Women`s games, however, with the high ratio of continue (neither score nor fault), tend to score usually after a long rally (Bergeles et al.,2009). The results of the study provide the basis for different training and game tactics in men and women`s volleyball games. Future studies will extend the scope to examine the performance difference between men and women`s volleyball games in non-scoring skills.
© Copyright 2014 19th Annual Congress of the European College of Sport Science (ECSS), Amsterdam, 2. - 5. July 2014. Veröffentlicht von VU University Amsterdam. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.