Five Chinese to officiate volleyball and beach volleyball at Beijing Games

GENEVA, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Five Chinese referees will officiate volleyball and beach volleyball at the Beijing Olympic Games this summer, according to a press release of the International Federation de Volleyball (FIVB) on Monday.

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

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

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

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

Canada's Darryl Friesen will officiate at his fourth straight Olympic Games. He is the only referee on the list to work at all four Olympic beach volleyball tournaments since the 1996 Atlanta Games.