Olympic champion attends Guiyang volleyball tournament

Rio Olympic Women's volleyball champion Hui Ruoqi traveled on April 15 to Guiyang – capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province – to help kick off the Guiyang Station of the 2023 VAL Volleyball League tournament in the city's Huaxi district.

It was the first time the event was held in Guiyang and more than 300 athletes in 18 teams from all over the country competed.

The Chinese volleyball league was founded in 2018 and it was established by Hui Ruoqi, who is promoting it. It is supported by the General Administration of Sport of China and the Swiss-based Federation Internationale de Volleyball.

Currently, the league covers 25 countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative and covers 33 provincial-level administrative regions in China.

At the opening ceremony, Hui said that the popularity of village basketball showed that Guizhou province was a great place for national sports. The purpose of the league was to promote national fitness, spread the volleyball spirit and provide a platform for communication with players, she added.

As a special part of the opening ceremony, Hui also gave some coaching and guidance to Guiyang volleyball team members.