The Beijing Olympic Village, the No. 1 village in the world

The Olympic Village has introduced concierge services into its daily operations to offer high-quality services similar to what world-class hotels are able to provide.

It is the first time that the widely-hailed service concept is being used in the history of the Olympic Games.

As many as 36 concierge volunteers will serve athletes and journalists from all over the world.

Yu Debin, the village's deputy director, said the volunteers would focus on reception work at the Athletes' Village, Green Homeland Media Village and Huiyuan Media Village.

They will complete their tour of duty on August 30 when the Paralympic Village opens.

The selection process for concierge volunteers was rigorous. On January 30 this year, the website of the Union Internationale Des Concierges D'hotels (UICH) released a notice and made available an application form. In less than one month, UICH China collected 1,658 application forms from 983 hotels all over China. Male applicants must be at least 170 cm tall, while female applicants have to be 160cm or taller.

All 50 short-listed applicants had at least five years of experience in hotel services and could speak a foreign language. Of the 40 who passed the preliminary selection stage in February, 36 were finally selected to become concierge volunteers for the Olympic Games. The 36 lucky applicants are from 15 cities and provinces, including Beijing, Guangzhou, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Hubei.

Sun Dong, chairman of UICH China, said, "There is no a standard or formula in terms of services. The concierge will aim to provide satisfying and pleasant services to customers without violating rules."

Sun said the UICH has prepared two sets of suits for the 36 volunteers. They will be dressed in black suits during the day and wear black tuxedos at night, along with black shoes.

"There are not only 36 volunteers serving the Olympics. Volunteers from Beijing and all over China will also devote themselves to the Olympics," he said.

"The UICH has members in hotels across China and they are in close contact. If athletes or the press ask the concierge for help in a business outside of the Paralympic Village, the network of concierge members will be very helpful," he added.