Rio to stage Olympic volleyball test event in July

Rio de Janeiro's Maracanazinho arena will stage the year's first 2016 Olympic test event in July, local organizers said.

The venue will host the Volleyball World League Finals from July 14 to 19. It will be the second Rio 2016 test event, following an international sailing regatta in Guanabara Bay last August, reports Xinhua.

"Hosting the world's top volleyball players at the spiritual home of the sport in Brazil will be a fantastic way to start the first wave of Rio 2016 events," Rio 2016 executive director of sport Agberto Guimaraes said on Friday.

Rio's Olympic test events will be grouped into three sections. Open-air sports like rowing, road cycling and equestrian will be tested from July to October.

Apart from volleyball, indoor events like table tennis, boxing and wheelchair rugby will be staged from November to February. A third cluster, from March to May 2016, will feature events with a large number of disciplines like athletics and swimming.

The Rio Games, to be held from August 5 to 21, 2016, will be the first Olympics in South America.