China has assembled a team of 30 sharpshooters to guard the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The official China Daily newspaper reported Friday, that the marksmen were picked from a group of more than 200 police officers. They competed for places on the sniper team during a month of trials.
The paper says the sharpshooters could be dispatched to handle kidnappings, riots or any incidents involving firearms that might develop at the Beijing games.
Ma Qiang, a senior Beijing police official, says China's Olympic security team includes officers with outstanding skills in fields such as forensics, bomb disposal and negotiations.
China Daily said organizers of the games have been increasingly concerned about security since the subway and bus bombings in London two months ago that killed more than 50 people.
Some information for this report provided by AP and AFP.