Introduction Body composition is an important aspect of health for every individual. It influences sport performance to a great extent. There is almost no difference in body composition of males and females in the early childhood but as they advance in age that differences becomes insidious. The purpose of this study was to compare the body composition of male and female national level sub-junior volleyball players.

Methods Male (N = 67) and female (N = 42) sub-junior that is, under 17 years (U-17), volleyball players from six states of India were the subjects of this study. Body composition of the two groups were understood by height, weight, body mass index (BMI), percentage body fat (BF%), fat mass (FM), lean body mass (LBM) and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). Data of each variable of male and female groups were compared (independent t test) and the level of significance was set at p <0.05 level.

Results Significant difference between the two groups was observed in height, weight, BF%, FM, LBM and WHR. Male group was superior in height, weight, LBM and WHR, and female group was superior in BF% and FM than the other group. No difference was observed in BMI of the two groups. Thus the study was concluded as, except BMI, there was difference in body composition of male and female national level sub-junior volleyball players. Female group tend to have greater adiposity than male group and the male group was superior in other body composition variables.