He/she is the libero (LEE-bah-ro), in Italian it means free. This player wears a different colored jersey so he/she can be easily identified to the officials and score keepers. The libero has specific rules that he/she can and cannot do. The score keeper keeps a libero tracker sheet to write down the movements in and out of the libero. Using a libero does not cost the team a substitution he/she goes in and out between the substitution line and the end line.
The libero was introduced to volleyball in 1998 in international play and in the NCAA in 2002. The position of libero has since made its way through out volleyball. This means that position is available in any grade level now.
The duties of the libero are primarily defensive. He/she is the best defensive player on the team and they are very quick and agile. The libero may set the ball to the front row player as long as he/she is behind the 10 foot line (and not stepping on); otherwise, the ball cannot be attacked above the net in front of the 10 foot line. However an underhand pass is allowed from any part of the court.
The libero can serve for one player or one specific rotation, not for everyone she goes in for. This rule has changes recently in 2004. Before 2004 the libero was not allowed to serve for anyone.
The libero may attack the ball as long as he/she stays below the height of the net and from behind (and not stepping on) the 10 foot line. The libero may not block or attempt to block any ball coming over the net.
A team can use only one libero per game. The team can switch liberos between games and use different ones in a match but only one per game. This means that if the player switching to the libero must switch to a different colored jersey from his/her teammates and keep his/her same number.
Can you identify the libero in these pictures?
Picture 1
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