The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on Tuesday that Hein Verbruggen will head the coordination commission for the 2008 Games in Beijing.

Verbruggen, from Holland, has been an IOC member since 1996. His experience includes assessing and deciding on city candidates for the 2008 Olympics. Before the 2008 Games come around, he'll have an early shot at coordinating as a member of the commission for the 2004 event in Athens.

"His experience...and knowledge of the Olympic movement make him the ideal person to accompany Beijing in its preparations for the Olympic Games in 2008," IOC President Jacques Rogge said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Organizing Committee for the Beijing Games will be set up in December this year, when the commission members are appointed. The first coordinating commission meeting will take place in the spring of 2002.

"I am confident that the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games will be able to guarantee us ideal conditions for staging superb Games," Verbruggen said.

Verbruggen is actively involved in sports and has years of experience organizing various events. He has been president of the International Cycling Union (UCI) since 1991, serves as vice-president of the General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) and has been a board member at the World Anti-Doping Agency since 1999.