Lang vows to lead China to ‘good results’ at Rio
Rio de Janeiro, Aug 2 (IANS) Jenny Lang Ping vowed, upon arrival at the Games Village here, to lead the Chinese women’s volleyball team to “good results” at the upcoming Olympics.
“I am very happy to participate in the Olympic Games again. I hope to lead the young players to achieve good results,” said Lang Ping, who had guided the Chinese women to the top of the podium at the World Cup in 2015, reports Xinhua.
The Chinese squad arrived here on Monday afternoon.
World Cup MVP Zhu Ting spearheads the Chinese team as nine of the 12 players are to make their Olympic debut in Rio. Veteran setter Wei Qiuyue and middle blocker Xu Yunli will compete in their third Olympic Games and outside hitter Hui Ruoqi is the only other player who went to the London Games four years ago.
“I am very lucky to have the chance to play for China at the Olympic Games again. I will try to make contribution to our team as best as I can,” Wei Qiuyue said.
China, who claimed the gold medal at the 1984 and 2004 Games, will start their Olympic campaign on Saturday with a match against the Netherlands. They will also face Italy, US, Serbia and Puerto Rico in their pool matches with the top four finishers from the pool to qualify for the quarter-finals.
Rio to boost police force during Olympics
Rio de Janeiro, Aug 2 (IANS) The Brazilian capital will increase the number of military police officers on patrol by 33 percent during the 2016 Olympic Games.
The increase means 13,900 officers will be safeguarding city streets, rather than 10,400, Col. Claudio Lima Freire, chief of staff of the Brazilian military, told the media on Monday at the Comprehensive Control Center (CiCC) set up for the Games, reports Xinhua news agency.
Some of the additional officers come from the administrative side of the force, he said, meaning they normally have desk jobs.
Some 1,300 officers will be stationed at Olympic venues where competitions are being held. The remainder will spread out throughout the city, joining police stations at Rio favelas, or slums, and check points for cars, buses and motorcycles.
“We will have greater control in the area of Barra da Tijuca,” said Lima, due to the concentration of Olympic venues in the district.
“Some 10,000 military police officers have received special training in containing terrorist threats inside and outside Olympic facilities,” he added.
To bolster security, officials said they will use airborne cameras that will transmit images in real time to the CiCC.
The increase in officers brings the overall security force to be deployed at the Games to nearly 55,000, including 22,000 military troops.