Department of Theory and Methodology of Volleyball and Basketball

Department Information

Theory and Methodology of Volleyball and Basketball

Full name of the department: Theory and Methodology of Volleyball and Basketball; Institute of Sport; Volga Region State University of Physical Culture, Sports and Tourism (Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of Higher Education).

Date of establishment: The department was established in 2018 (Academy Order No. 267-o dated April 25, 2018) following the reorganization of the Department of Theory and Methodology of Sports Games (Rector’s Order No. 297-o dated July 26, 2013).

Unit/Affiliation: Academic unit; Institute of Sport.

Staffing: The department employs 18 faculty members (17 full-time and 1 external part-time). The staff includes 6 lecturers, 7 senior lecturers, 4 Candidates of Sciences, and 1 Doctor of Sciences. Regarding academic ranks and titles: 1 holds the title of Professor, 2 hold the title of Associate Professor; regarding sports titles: 5 hold the title of Master of Sport, 1 is an Honored Coach of Russia, and 2 are Honored Coaches of the Republic of Tatarstan. Full-time faculty account for 94.4% of the staff. The proportion of faculty members holding academic degrees is 58.8% based on headcount (61.1% overall) and 67.4% based on full-time equivalent (FTE) positions. The average age of the faculty is 46 years. All faculty members regularly complete scheduled professional development courses (at the Institute of Additional Education of the Volga Region State University of Physical Culture, Sports and Tourism). Highly qualified practitioners are actively involved in conducting training sessions.

Research activities: Since the department's inception, 30 articles have been published in journals indexed in international databases (Scopus and WoS), over 160 articles in journals on the VAK (Higher Attestation Commission) list, and more than 700 papers indexed in the RSCI (Russian Science Citation Index) database. Twenty-four monographs have been published, and the department has secured 6 invention patents, 1 utility model patent, and 2 certificates of state registration for databases.

Fields of study: In accordance with its license and accreditation, the department offers training in the following programs: the Bachelor’s degree program (Field of Study 49.03.04 "Sport"—specializations in volleyball, basketball, and handball) and the Master’s degree program (Field of Study 49.04.03 "Sport"—specialization in "Theory and Methodology of Athlete Training in Acyclic and Team Sports").

Educational and methodological work: Since the department's inception, 55 publications have been released, including 8 textbooks, 18 teaching aids, and 29 sets of methodological guidelines and curricula. Two of these publications bear the official endorsement of the Russian Higher Education Methodological Association (UMO) for Physical Culture and the Federal Educational Methodological Association (FUMO) for the Bachelor’s program 49.03.01 "Physical Culture."

Student body: The total number of students is 286 (100 in basketball, 133 in volleyball, 34 in handball, and 19 Master’s students).

Student athletic qualifications: 6 Masters of Sport and 30 Candidates for Master of Sport; notably, 2 students are members (or candidates for membership) of the Russian national team.

Notable alumni:

1. Irina Voronkova (two-time Olympic participant)

2. Daria Malygina (Olympic participant)

3. Viktor Poletaev (Olympic medalist)

4. Timur Belyalov (Olympic medalist)

5. Vladislav Trushkin

6. Tatiana Romanova

7. Anna Kotikova

8. Slavomir Byarda

The department has organized and currently runs 12 teams:

Volleyball – 4 (2 men’s, 2 women’s)

Basketball – 2 (men’s and women’s)

3x3 Basketball – 4 (2 men’s, 2 women’s)

Handball – 2 (men’s and women’s)

Over the years, the department has overseen three teams competing in Russian championships and leagues (First and Higher Leagues): VC "Akademiya-Kazan," HC "Zilant," and BC "RPF-University of Sport."

Our sports achievements:

International competitions:

1st University Ice Hockey World Cup (2 students on the Russian national team) – 1st place (2018); European University 3x3 Basketball Championship (women) – 7th place (2018); World InterUniversities Championships (men's volleyball) – 2nd place (2019); "Minsk Cup: Knights of the Ball" International Tournament (women's 3x3 basketball) – 4th place (2021).

All-Russian competitions:

Volleyball: 4th Summer All-Russian Universiade: men – 1st place, women – 2nd place (2014); 5th Summer All-Russian Universiade: men – 1st place, women – 1st place (2016); 6th Summer All-Russian Universiade: men – 1st place, women – 7th place (2018); 7th Summer All-Russian Universiade: women – 5th place (2020); 8th Summer All-Russian Universiade: men – 3rd place, women – 7th place (2022); 9th Summer All-Russian Universiade: men – 5th place (2024).

3rd All-Russian Youth Spartakiad: men – 2nd place, women – 1st place (2014).

20th Union State Spartakiad: women – 1st place (2023).

ASSC RF Championship: men – 1st place, women – 2nd place (2019); men – 1st place, women – 1st place (2020); men – 7th place, women – Team 1: 2nd place, Team 2: 4th place (2021); women – 1st place (2023).

Basketball: Association of Student Basketball (ASB) Championship: men – Top 32, women – 2nd place (Superfinal) (2015–16); men – Top 16, women – 3rd place (Superfinal) (2016–17); men – Top 8, women – Top 16 (2017–18); men – Top 8, women – Top 16 (2019–20); men – Top 32, women – Top 32 (2020–21); men – Top 32, women – Top 16 (2021–22); men – Top 64, women – Top 32 (2022–23); men – Top 8, women – Top 64 (2024–25).

Men – ASB Championship VTB League: 10th place (2016–17), 4th place (2017–18), 8th place (2018–19), 3rd place (2019–20); ASB Championship RZD Superleague: 4th place (2020–21), 8th place (2024–25).

Women’s teams – ASB Championship Superleague: 2nd place (2018–19), 5th place (2019–20); ASB Championship RZD Superleague: 7th place (2021–22), 12th place (2024–25).

Russian Student 3x3 Basketball Championship: women – 1st place (2017), women – 2nd place (2018), men – 2nd place (2018). Russian 3x3 Basketball Championship: women – 1st place (2020), women – 3rd place (2021); men – 3rd place (2021).

ASSC RF Championship: men – 5th place, women – 2nd place (2019); men – 1st place, women – 5th place (2020); men – 3rd place, women – 1st place (2021).

Handball: 7th Summer All-Russian Universiade: women – 4th place (2020); 8th Summer All-Russian Universiade: women – 4th place, men – 7th place (2022); 9th Summer All-Russian Universiade: women – 4th place, men – 4th place (2024).

All-Russian Student Handball Competitions: men – 3rd place (2021), 3rd place (2023), 1st place (2025).

"Heroes of the City" All-Russian Handball Tournament: women – 1st place, men – 2nd place (2021); "Heroes of the City" All-Russian Handball Tournament: women – 2nd place, men – 3rd place (2022); "Heroes of the City" All-Russian Handball Tournament: women – 2nd place, men – 2nd place (2023); "Heroes of the City" All-Russian Handball Tournament: women – 4th place, men – 2nd place (2025).

Republic-level competitions:

Republic of Tatarstan Basketball Championship and Cup: Men – 1st place, Women – 1st place (2017–2021); Men – 2nd place, Women – 2nd place (2022); Women – 3rd place (2023); Women – 1st place (2024, 2025).

Republic of Tatarstan 3x3 Basketball Championship: Men – 1st place, Women – 1st and 2nd places (2021); Men – 1st place, Women – 1st and 2nd places (2022).

Student Basketball and Volleyball Leagues (Men and Women) – 1st place (2016–2025).

Republic of Tatarstan University Spartakiad (Basketball and Volleyball: Men and Women) – 1st place (2016–2025).

Republic of Tatarstan Handball Championship: Men – 1st place, Women – 1st place (2021); Men – 1st place, Women – 1st place (2022); Republic of Tatarstan University Handball Spartakiad: Men – 1st place (2021–22), 3rd place (2022–23), 1st place (2023–24), 1st place (2024–25); Student Handball League: Men – 1st place (2021–22), 3rd place (2022–23), 1st place (2023–24), 1st place (2024–25).