Physical activity has been shown to improve the health and well-being of students, athletes and the general population, especially when it is properly monitored and responses are evaluated. However, data are mostly gathered without considering a valuable element, participants’ perceptions. Therefore, the objective was to know the perception of volleyball student-athletes when using different monitoring and response tools that assess well-being, workloads, responses to workloads, and academic demands. A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with female volleyball student-athletes (n = 22) was used to know players’ perceptions when using a wellness/well-being questionnaire, session ratings of perceived exertion (sRPE), and countermovement jumps (CMJ), and consider academic demands. Results show that the wellness questionnaire and sRPE increased student-athletes’ awareness of well-being and readiness to perform, improved self-evaluation, self-regulation, and self-demand. However, motivation and overcoming challenges were based on the CMJ. Academic demands affected 82% of student-athletes, altering stress, fatigue, and sleep quality. Nonetheless, sport was seen as an activity that helped with academic commitments. Therefore, the wellness questionnaires and the sRPE facilitated self-awareness and positive dispositions toward self-regulation. Simultaneous intensive academic demands and training can produce mutual positive effects if the variables of physical and mental loads are harmonized in the critical academic and sports periods.

The objectives of this revision were to identify game indicators, the references for evaluating tactical efficiency, and the types of data analysis used in invasion team sports for the analysis of tactical performance. A search of the principal electronic databases was carried out, the procedure was adjusted to the PRISMA-P 2015 protocol, and 62 non-experimental published articles were obtained from the years 2000–2016. The results showed the complimentary use of diverse types of indicators and the frequent elaboration of instruments ad hoc. The individual technical-tactical actions were widely used. The record of standardised team actions was scarce. The research lines with a sequential data record for their temporary analysis were significant. The transitory or final score and the results of game sequences were the most used references of performance. The big data tools of analysis, web analysis, and the detection of temporal patterns or the application of polar coordinates were emerging methods of analysis.

The aims of this study were to compare the Setter’s action range with availability of first tempo (SARA) between male and female volleyball; and to determine the relationship between several spatial and offensive variables and their influence in the success of the side-out in male and female volleyball. A total of 1302 side-outs (639 male, 663 female) were registered (2019 European Championship). The ranking, reception efficacy, position and trajectory of the setter between reception and set, first tempo availability, side-out result, rotation, and attack lane were analyzed through Recursive Partitioning for classification, regression and survival tree models and classification and regression trees algorithms. Our results present female teams with more reduced SARAs than male teams, meaning female setters tend to play closer to the net. The correlation between the ranking and the distance from the average position of the setter to the ideal setting zone was not significant. A movement of the setter of 30° or less and more than 1 m in distance might improve the performance of the side-out. Depending on the spatial usage of the setter, some rotations might be more successful than others. When assessing performance, the teams should consider the ability to play quick attacks when their reception is not as precise as they would expect.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the distance between the setter, the middle hitter and the second tempo attacker can predict the attack zone in Complex I in elite male volleyball. A total amount of 3,936 rallies corresponding to 23 matches of the Men’s World Championship 2010 were analysed following a category system, recurring to an observational methodology. Measured variables were Availability of the middle hitter, Attack type, Latitude of the middle hitter, setter, and second tempo attacker, Second tempo attack lane and Distance between players. Results suggest that a relationship with high level of significance (p<0.01) exists between the middle hitter’s position and setter’s position, regardless of the occurrence of a first tempo attack. Using a classification tree, it was observed that the middle hitter’s position was modified according to setter’s position, normally with a distance of one or two metres on his left. Furthermore, the variable Distance from setter to middle hitter emerged as a key factor to dismiss a second tempo attack in the central lane. This study provides a dynamical perspective about the spatial relationships between players, and how these constitute a key factor to dismiss or not a specific final attack zone.

The objective of this study was to determine the probability of success of the different players who execute the terminal actions according to their role and location on the court at that time, differentiating between the 2010 World Championship and the 2011 European Championship. 23 matches of the World Championship (n=5790) and 29 of the European Championship (n=7640) were analysed, differentiating by the roles of the players (setter, receiver, middle blocker, opposite and libero), type of terminal action (serve#, serve=, attack#, attack=, block#, block=, reception=, set=, defence= and others) and location at the time of the action (front court and back court). The descriptive analysis showed greater participation in final actions by the receiver (39%) and the opposite (25%), with no differences between the two championships being found Logistic regression analysis carried out by the player’s role and location at the time gave highly significant results (p<0.001). The opposite was the player with greater probability of success in his actions in both championships (World Championship; European Championship), followed by the receiver (OR: 0.723; 0.662), middle blocker (OR: 0.553; 0.612) and setter (OR: 0.250; 0.242). Execution from the front court showed greater success than from the back court, both for the World Championship (OR: 3.271) and the European Championship (OR: 2.809).