Volleyball!!!¹

Karasuno: Coach Ukai Keishin, a former player and experienced coach with a keen eye for tactics and a knack for identifying players' strengths. The team is also led by Takeda Ittetsu, a teacher and the club's official mentor: kind, persistent, and motivating, despite initially having little knowledge of volleyball. The managers are Kiyoko Shimizu, a calm, serious, and responsible third-year, and Yachi Hitoka, a shy and anxious first-year who is gradually gaining confidence.

Nekoma: Coach: Nekomata Yasufumi, an experienced and wise mentor with a keen understanding of player psychology. He has a long-standing friendship and rivalry with Ukai and strives to develop Nekoma's teamwork. Assistant: Naoi Manabu, who assists Nekomata in coaching the team. The Nekoma men's team does not have a permanent named manager in the canon.

Fukurōdani: Coach Yamiji Takeyuki, an experienced mentor who supports the team and is particularly understanding of Bokuto's unique strengths. Managers are Yukie Shirofuku and Kaori Suzumeda. Both monitor the team's performance and assist with training and matches. Yukie is calmer and more level-headed, while Kaori is energetic and outgoing.

Aoba Johsai: Coach: Irihata Nobuteru, a calm and level-headed mentor who prefers to let his players find solutions and build their own game. Assistant: Mizoguchi Sadayuki, who assists Irihata with training and team organization. The Aoba Johsai men's team doesn't have a named manager.

Oikawa Toru is the captain and setter. Tall and slender, with brown hair and brown eyes. A talented and highly intelligent setter, he can bring out the best in any forward. He has a powerful and accurate serve. His strengths include passing, serving, tactics, and leadership. His weaknesses include stubbornness, excessive competition, and physical fatigue from constant training.

Iwaizumi Hajime is the vice-captain and ace outside hitter. He's of average height, muscular, and has short dark hair. He's a reliable and powerful attacker, one of the team's main sources of strength. His strengths include physical prowess, attack, reception, and consistency. His weakness is that he sometimes relies too heavily on strength.

Issei Matsukawa is a middle blocker. Tall and strong, with short dark hair and a calm expression. He reads attacks well and is an effective blocker. His strengths are blocking, height, and composure. His weakness is his lack of speed.

Hanamaki Takahiro is a wing spiker. Tall, slender, with short light brown hair. A calm and level-headed all-rounder, he works well with the team. His strengths are receiving, attacking, and consistency. His weakness is that he doesn't have the same clear-cut attack as Oikawa or Iwaizumi.

Yahaba Shigeru is a setter and reserve. Tall, slender, with light brown hair. A serious and ambitious player, he could replace Oikawa. His strengths are passing, serving, and responsibility. His weakness is his lack of experience and skill compared to Oikawa.

Kindaichi Yutaro is a middle blocker. He's very tall and lean, with short brown hair. He has a good jump and a powerful attack, especially effective in fast combinations. His strengths are his height, blocking, and attacking. His weaknesses are his inexperience and inconsistency.

Kunimi Akira is a wing spiker. Tall, thin, with short dark hair and a calm expression. He uses his energy sparingly and prefers to play rationally. His strengths are technique, precision, and endurance. His weakness is low motivation.

Bokuto Kotaro is the captain and ace outside hitter. Tall and muscular, he has spiky gray-white hair and golden eyes. He's one of the team's strongest attackers: a powerful shot, excellent technique, and a vast arsenal of attacks. His strengths are strength, jumping, technique, and confidence. His weakness is his emotionality: when in a bad mood, he can lose confidence and effectiveness.

Akaashi Keiji is the setter and vice-captain. Tall, thin, with black hair and gray-blue eyes. Calm, level-headed, and very observant. He analyzes the game well and adjusts passes to Bokuto and the other forwards. His strengths are intelligence, precision, tactics, and consistency. His weaknesses are excessive responsibility and a tendency to worry too much about the outcome.

Konoha Akinori is a wing spiker. Tall, thin, with short light brown hair. A versatile and reliable player, capable of receiving, attacking, and defending. His strengths are versatility, consistency, and a good understanding of the game. His weakness is that he lacks the same outstanding specialization as the team's main stars.

Sarukui Yamaato is a wing spiker. Tall, strong, with short dark hair. A calm and reliable player, he excels at receiving and attacking. His strengths are consistency, teamwork, and defense. His weakness is his relatively low individual power.

Komi Haruhiko is the libero. He's short, stocky, and has short dark hair. He's a very fast and reliable defender, and handles difficult balls well. His strengths are his reflexes, reception, and endurance. His weakness is his limited offensive capabilities due to his position as the libero.

Aono Tasuku is a middle blocker. Tall and stocky, with short dark hair. He's a strong blocker and good at blocking opponents' attacks at the net. His strengths are his height, blocking, and physical strength. His weakness is his lack of mobility compared to faster players.

Konoha Akinori, Sarukui Yamaato, Komi Haruhiko and the rest of the Fukurōdani players maintain a strong team system around Bokuto and Akaashi.

Kuroo Tetsuro is the captain and middle blocker. Tall and lean, with spiky black hair and narrow eyes. A smart and cunning blocker, he's excellent at reading attackers and applying pressure. His strengths include blocking, analysis, and leadership. His weakness is that he sometimes likes to provoke opponents too much.

Kenma Kozume is the setter. He's short and thin, with fair skin, tousled black-blond hair, and golden-brown eyes. He's the team's strategist, preferring to analyze the opponent and conserve his energy. His strengths are intelligence, precision, and tactics. His weaknesses include low stamina and a reluctance to expend excess energy.

Yaku Morisuke is the libero. He's short, stocky, with short dark hair and a sharp gaze. One of Nekoma's best defenders, he's incredibly reliable at receiving balls. His strengths are his reflexes, reception, and consistency. His weakness is his short stature.

Yamamoto Taketora is a wing spiker and primary attacker. Muscular, with short black hair and distinctive eyebrows, he's energetic and fiery, possessing a powerful attack. His strengths are power, drive, and confidence. His weaknesses are his emotionality and tendency to act in a straightforward manner.

Shohei Fukunaga is a wing spiker. He's short, thin, and has short dark hair. He's a quiet and reserved player, known for his unexpected attacks and a keen eye for the ball. His strengths include technique, versatility, and composure. His weakness is that he lacks exceptional physical strength.

Kai Nobuyuki is a wing spiker and vice-captain. Tall, strong, with short black hair. He's a very consistent and reliable player, good at receiving and defending. His strengths are versatility, calmness, and teamwork. His weakness is his lack of a clear individual weapon.

Lev Khaiba is a middle blocker. Very tall and lean, with white hair and green eyes. He's an energetic and confident rookie with enormous potential. His strengths are his height, leap, and powerful attack. His weaknesses are his inexperience, inconsistency, and poor reception.

Shibayama Yuki is a libero, a substitute. He is short, thin, with a fair complexion.

Kageyama Tobio is the setter. Tall, thin, with tousled black hair and blue eyes. He's a brilliant passer with incredible accuracy, speed, and ball control. His strength is his ability to adjust passes to the striker. His weakness is that he used to be too selfish and didn't work well as a team player.

Hinata Shoyo is a middle blocker. He's short and thin, with bright orange hair and brown eyes. He possesses incredible speed, jumping ability, and endurance. His main weapons are quick attacks and unexpected jumps. His weaknesses are his short stature, inexperience, and weak reception.

Tsukishima Kei is a middle blocker. Tall and thin, with blond hair and glasses. A cool and calculating blocker, he reads his opponents' plays well. His strengths are technique and analysis. His weaknesses include not being able to push himself to the limit and often taking a detached approach to volleyball.

Yamaguchi Tadashi is a reserve outside hitter. He's thin, tall, and has short light brown hair. He specializes in float serves and is gradually becoming more reliable. His strengths are his serve and ability to learn. His weaknesses include a lack of self-confidence.

Nishinoya Yu is a libero. Short, muscular, with tousled black hair. An exceptionally fast and courageous defender, he's capable of saving seemingly hopeless balls. His strengths are reaction time, reception, and concentration. His weakness is his inability to attack or block like a front-row player.

Tanaka Ryunosuke is a wing spiker. Muscular, with short black hair and shaved sides. A strong attacker, confident and mentally resilient. His weakness is that he sometimes acts too emotionally and relies on his own confidence.

Sawaamura Daichi is the captain and outside hitter. Tall, strong, with short black hair. A reliable player, he excels at receiving, defending, and attacking consistently. His strengths are experience, endurance, and leadership; his weakness is his lack of a standout individual weapon.

Sugawara Koshi is a setter and reserve. He's short, with blond hair and kind brown eyes. He's an experienced, calm, and attentive setter. He understands his teammates well and supports them.

Karasuno is a high school in Miyagi Prefecture. Its volleyball team was once known as the "Indomitable Crows," but suffered a decline. Thanks to new players, the team has once again become a strong contender. Karasuno is known for its unconventional combinations, fast attacks, and a constant drive to improve. Their uniform colors are black and orange. Key players include Hinata, Kageyama, Tsukishima, Yamaguchi, Nishinoya, Tanaka, Asahi, Sugawara, and Daichi.

Nekoma is a high school in Tokyo. Its team is known as the "Cats." Their main strengths are strong defense, consistent reception, and tactical play. Nekoma prefers long rallies and gradually finds their opponents' weaknesses. The team is considered Karasuno's main rival and longtime friend. Their uniform colors are red and black. Key players include Kuroo, Kenma, Yaku, Yamamoto, and Fukunaga.

Fukurōdani is a high school in Tokyo. The volleyball team is known as the "owls." They are a strong team, capable of quickly changing tactics and playing to the strengths of their players. The star player is Bokuto Kotaro, a powerful and emotional ace whose play is heavily influenced by his mood. Akaashi Keiji is the setter and one of the team's key players. Fukurōdani is in the same training group as Nekoma.

Aoba Johsai (Seijo) is a high school from Miyagi. A strong, disciplined team known for its excellent teamwork and powerful serves. The team's star player is Oikawa Toru, a talented setter and captain who is able to unlock the potential of his hitters. Other key players include Iwaizumi Hajime, Matsukawa, Hanamakki, Kindaichi, and Kunimi. Aoba Johsai is one of Karasuno's main rivals.

Volleyball is a team sport played between two teams of six players, each separated by a net. The goal is to get the ball to the opponent's court so it touches the floor or to force the opponent to make a mistake.

Basic rules: A team may touch the ball no more than three times before sending it over the net. The ball may not be caught or held. A rally begins with the serve. A team wins a point for each serve. When the serve changes, players rotate clockwise. A match typically lasts until three sets are won.

Player roles:

• Setter - organizes attacks and passes to the attackers.
• The outside hitter is a versatile player who participates in reception, defense, attack and block.
• Diagonal player - the team's main attacker, makes powerful strikes and participates in blocking.
• Middle blocker - responsible for blocks at the net and quick attacks through the center.
  The libero is a defensive and receiving specialist. They wear a different colored uniform, do not attack above the net, and do not participate in blocking.
• The captain is the team representative, communicates with the judges and supports the players.

Terms:

• Serve - putting the ball into play.
• Reception is the first touch after the opponent’s serve or attack.
• Passing (passing) is preparing the ball for attack.
• Attack (spike) - a hit on the ball towards the opponent's side.
• Block is an attempt to stop an attack at the net.
• An ace is a serve that the opponent was unable to receive.
• Dig is a defensive technique for a strong attack.
• Quick attack - an attack immediately after the setter's short pass.