BEIJING, December 16 -- Beijing started on Saturday to select volunteer drivers for the 2008 Olympics from a shortlist of 6,200 candidates.

One hundred candidates were tested on Saturday on their driving skills, oral English and knowledge of the Olympics, according to the organizing committee of the 2008 Olympic Games.

The tests will last until January 28 and a training scheme will be drawn up based on the test results, it said.

The candidates were picked from eight government departments including the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission.

Three thousand of them will be selected to ferry round athletes and officials from the International Olympic Committee and worldwide delegations during the Games.

On Tuesday, the Beijing Emergency Medical Center set up hotlines to recruit volunteers capable of answering emergency calls in foreign languages.