Lausanne, June 3, 2008 – The FIVB has agreed with the China Volleyball Association that the Chinese can change the host city for their 2008 FIVB World League home matches from Chengdu to Hangzhou following the devastating earthquake in the Sichuan Province.

Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, has been badly affected by the disaster that happened on May 12.

The FIVB and CVA have confirmed they will work together to ensure the highest standards for teams, officials and fans at the Zhejiang Provincial Huanglong Gymnasium in Hangzhou.

China's home ties in Pool D will be played on the first three of six weekends of Intercontinental Round action. On the first weekend, they host Japan on June 14 at 20:00 local time and June 15 at 15:00.

China faces Poland on June 21 at 20:00 and June 22 at 15:00 and Egypt on June 28 at 20:00 and June 29 at 15:00. The Chinese, who placed ninth in the 2007 World League, travel to Poland on the fourth weekend, Egypt on the fifth and Japan on the sixth.

The World League, started by the FIVB in 1990, is the flagship annual event for Men’s Volleyball. The 2008 edition will see 96 matches over six consecutive weekends in 41 cities across the globe.

The six Intercontinental Rounds begin the weekend of June 13-15 and end the weekend of July 18-20. The teams are divided into four pools, with each team playing their pool opponents twice over a weekend both home and away.

Brazil, France, Serbia, Venezuela are in Pool A, Russia, Cuba, Korea, Italy in Pool B, USA, Bulgaria, Spain, Finland in Pool C and Poland, Japan, China, Egypt in Pool D.

The Final Round will be contested by six teams in Rio de Janeiro through July 23-27, where hosts Brazil will be looking for their sixth-straight victory.  The Final Round is now open for press accreditation applications, with the application form available on the official FIVB website at www.fivb.org