The fundamental decision on the need to hold a separate competition among undersized athletes (men under 185 cm (6’1″) and women under 175 cm(5’9”)) was made by the International Volleyball Federation back in 2002 in order to popularize this sport in Asian countries further.
However, the initiative was never implemented.
Tall and short players today still play together on the same court and perfectly complement each other.
We often hear: “I’m too short, I can’t play volleyball, it’s not for me.” Volleyball positions vary. Height is not always what counts.
As a result, they sometimes doubt their abilities to test themselves in a discipline that interests them and with which they even want to tie their future.
It cannot be denied that height in this sport facilitates the path to a career, but don’t be discouraged if you’re not in this range;
According to our calculations, the average male volleyball player is 196,02 cm (6’5”), and the average female volleyball player’s height is 181,43 cm (5’11”).
In this article, we’ll go over average heights by positions, explain how important they are, and discuss a few crucial questions regarding height in volleyball.
Average Volleyball Player Height – Overall
As mentioned before, height is an asset that facilitates the path to a professional volleyball career.
On the pitch, we can see a lot of players doing a great job under the net.
They can jump high into the block and block the opponent’s ball thanks to their height. The same applies to attackers who, thanks to their range, can attack the ball from a high altitude and direct it into the light of the field on the other side of the net.
On the other hand, an ideal solution for a person who does not have the right height may be the libero position.
I tried to determine the average height of a volleyball player, both male and female. I selected 100 random volleyball players from ten random clubs. To get the average height, I’ll added up their heights and divided by 100.
It turned out that a volleyball player’s height is 6’5” (196,02 cm).
The average height of volleyball players changes as some players retire and are replaced by younger players.
As a general rule, we should assume that it may be between 195 and 197 cm. It is roughly 15 cm taller than a man’s typical height.
The typical height of a female volleyball player is 181,43 cm (6.28 ft).
Therefore, it is safe to claim that the average height of a female volleyball player is 180 cm(5.91 ft)-183 cm despite ongoing changes (6 ft).
The typical female is 160 cm tall (5.25 ft).
Average Volleyball Player Height – By Position
Now let’s look at the height of individual players in terms of the positions they play.
Attacker – Specialized in scoring points
Regarding the height of volleyball players in this position, you can often see players over 6’6” (198 cm) tall.
No wonder, thanks to their high jump and strong impact, they can score important points for the team. Attack range is crucial in this position.
Receiver – The all-rounder
This position on the pitch is very important. In fact, the receiver is a versatile player that can be found anywhere on the pitch. He attacks and defends all around the floor.
As for height, it is best if the player is taller than 6’3” (190 cm).
Middle – Block is the key to success
The main task of the player playing in this position is to block the opponent’s attacks.
Moreover, he sometimes attacks from the so-called short, which can surprise the player on the other side of the net.
The players over 6’7” (201 cm) will be the best players in this position to increase their range while blocking the ball.
Playmaker – The brain of the team
This player’s task is to display the balls. He decides which volleyball players he will direct the ball to.
A person in this position should be able to read the opponent’s game well, and thanks to a good display, he can confuse the opposing team and assist with the scored point.
It is often said that the playmaker is the brain of the entire team. The average playmaker is around 6’3” (190 cm).
Is the Libero Position Ideal for Shorter Players?
The libero position is an ideal solution for people who are not tall. At this position, speed and agility count as the libero must react quickly to the ball coming towards him.
They often have to go to the dance floor to receive it, which is why short stature makes it easy.
Perhaps some people believe that the libero position is of little importance. They would prefer to be attackers or acceptors who score points for the team.
This is not true because positions in volleyball are very important. Each one brings the team closer to victory.
Thanks to the fact that the player is shorter than his teammates, he can pick up the ball more easily. Libero gives his team a chance to score a point.
Get into your dream club, play in the national team or win important medals at the Championships or even the Olympic Games.
It is important not to give up, train, and pursue your goal because everyone should make their dreams come true.
The Shortest Volleyball Players Who Made It
Being short and playing sports? This is a common problem for many people.
Even though the positions above can scare some people regarding the required height of volleyball players and discourage them from playing volleyball if the person is short, it should be known that not everyone has this advantage.
Now let’s look at players who, even though they are not tall, are making a professional career in this beautiful sport.
Thanks to such players, it is possible to regain the motivation to follow the path leading to playing for the club and maybe even on the national team.
Let’s look at the profiles of the shortest female and male volleyball players.
Shortest Male Players
Farhad Zarif from Iran is the shortest volleyball player, only 5’5” (165 cm), and plays the libero position.
Many people may find that he can’t do anything with a such height, but that’s not true.
The Iranian has many trophies and individual awards. The shortest volleyball player also won the Asian Championship twice with his team and the title of best libero.
Jiajie Chen – libero of the Chinese national team, 5’7” (170 cm). He represented China in 2018 during the League of Nations and the World Cup.
Taichiro Koga – Japanese who plays libero. He is only 5’7” (170 cm), but that doesn’t stop him from playing great.
Koga won a gold medal with the Japanese national team in the Asian championship. As a curiosity, it can be added that in the 2017-2020 seasons, he played for the Polish club Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie.
Shortest female players
Celestine Nafula – the shortest player from Kenya, only 4’11” (150 cm) and playing as a libero.
She is a competitor who was included in her country’s national team in 2018 at the World Cup in Japan. This girl has shown that height in volleyball does not matter that much when it comes to libero position.
Jorella Marie de Jesus – this is a player who comes from the Philippines and is 5’0” (152 cm). What may be surprising is that she is not playing in the libero but the receiver.
Xiang-Chen Lai – is a Chinese woman who is only 5’0” (153 cm). Like Nafula, he plays in the libero position.
She represented Chinese Taipei and participated in the qualifiers for the Tokyo Olympics, which will begin on July 23, 2021.
As seen from the players mentioned above, you can go far even with short stature.
