IN BRIEF (Page 23)

Volleyball

Chinese selected to officiate volleyball at Olympics

GENEVA: Five Chinese will referee volleyball and beach volleyball at the Beijing Olympic Games this summer, according to the International Federation de Volleyball (FIVB) on Monday.

The FIVB confirmed the nomination of 38 referees from 26 countries and regions for the volleyball and beach volleyball tournaments at the Olympic Games.

Wang Ning and Liu Jiang will officiate volleyball, while their compatriots Liu Hongyu, Lu Weiping and Wang Leijun are on the list for beach volleyball.

Among the 22 volleyball referees nominated for the Games, there will be five Olympic debutants including Italy's Massimo Menghini, Bulgaria's Konstantin Tufekchiev, France's Patrick Deregnacourt and Mexico's Humberto Salas.

Thailand's Janpen Jirakakul rounds out the group of first-timers and she is among three female referees going to the Summer Games, along with Patricia Salvatore of the United States and Karin Zahorcova of the Czech Republic.

Basketball

Young shooting kings crowned in Beijing

The ING Shooting King Awards, a grassroots basketball event, concluded at Menkougou Gymnasium in Beijing on Saturday.

Hosted by Beijing Municipal Education Commission and ING Group, and organized by Beijing Students Activities Management Center, the event drew students from more than 2,000 primary and middle schools in 18 districts and counties in Beijing, while 158 students participated in the event's final on Saturday afternoon.

"The competition provides an opportunity for youths in Beijing to understand the fascination of sports and the spirit of the Olympics," said Du Songpeng, vice-director of Beijing Municipal Education Commission. "ING group has set a good example for other international companies in China in supporting the social activities of local communities and youth."

ING Group has actively developed grassroots sports in Beijing, investing 6 million yuan ($854,640) in a variety of basketball events, including the Across-Strait Cup and various training schools.

Motor Sports

Domestic formula race to start in April

The Asian Geely Formula International Open will get off the grid in Zhuhai on April 12.

In its second year, AGF, sanctioned by the International Automobile Association and Federation of China Autosports, is the first domestic formula-racing event.

This season races will be held in Zhuhai, Chengdu, Shanghai, Beijing, Malaysia and Macao - two more than last year.

To make the event more competitive and appealing, each stage will include three timed and untimed practices and one warm-up before the race, along with other off-track activities.

"The preparation work is underway and we will show the fans home-made cars during the event," said Liu Jianquan, secretary of the organizing committee.

Domestic media have shown great interest. Hubei TV will broadcast the race live and about 200 other media outlets will also cover the event.

(China Daily 04/03/2008 page23)