Rio de Janeiro, March 19 (IANS): Rio de Janeiro will host 21 test events this year as the city fine-tunes preparations for the 2016 Olympics.

An additional 23 events will be held from January to May 2016. Test events will be divided into three segments, beginning with volleyball in July this year, reports Xinhua.

The first cluster of events, due to end in October, will mainly feature outdoor sports such as rowing, cycling and equestrian. The second group, from November to February, will focus more on indoor events such as boxing, basketball and diving. The final instalment will feature competitions like athletics, swimming, weightlifting and football.

"Test events are a crucial part of preparations for staging Olympics and Paralympics, allowing the organising committee and its partners, in particular International Sports Federations and government partners, to test all aspects of venue operations," said Delphine Moulin, Rio 2016 test events general manager.

Only some events will be open to public. The Olympics, the first to be held in South America, will be staged from August 5 to 21.