Champs China eyes London Olympics

GUANGZHOU, China, Nov 28, 2010 - After total domination of the Asian Games, China's sports juggernaut will be relentless in its preparations to top the table at the 2012 London Olympics, sports officials said.

China topped the Asiad for the eigth straight time winning 199 gold and a whopping 416 total medals - both Asian Games records - and outpacing nearest rivals South Korea and Japan which won 75 and 48 gold medals respectively.

"This medal haul again can represent a major achievement in our preparations for the London Olympic Games," said Duan Shijie, chef de mission of the Chinese delegation and vice minister of sports.

But "just because we had a successful Asian Games does not mean that we will be bound for success at the London Olympics ... we will never relent. We will devote our utmost efforts to the preparation of the London Olympic Games."

China is coming off its strongest-ever Olympic performance at the 2008 Beijing Games where it topped perennial sports powerhouses the United States and Russia in the gold medal stakes.

In London, China's stars like hurdler Liu Xiang, badminton pin-up Lin Dan and a group of elite divers, tennis table paddlers, weight-lifters and gymnasts aim to show the world that what they did in Beijing can be done abroad.

"The reason why we have been largely successful is related to the rise of our nation, along with the constant rise of China's economy and our comprehensive national strength," Duan said.

Of the 199 gold medals won in Guangzhou, 128 of them were won by Chinese youths making their first-ever appearances at the Asian Games, he said.

"In our strong sports our athletes have maintained the marked advantage over their competitors that we have had since the Beijing Olympics and we feel this is sustainable based on our talent pool," Duan said.

Swimming is one sport where China showed obvious improvement grabbing 24 of the 38 gold medals on offer in Guangzhou and defeating once superior rivals from Japan and South Korea.

A leading threat for China in London could be Sun Yang who obliterated the Asian mark in the men's 1,500 metre freestyle by more than 10 seconds clocking 14min 35.43sec and winning a total of three gold medals.

Ye Shiwen, just 14, underlined the strength of China's younger generation of swimmers, winning the 200m individual medley after her earlier success over 400m, while Shao Yiwen, 15, won the women's 400m freestyle and Li Xuanxu, 16, took 800m freestyle gold.

Meanwhile, Liu Xiang showed he is recovering from injury and nearing his once world record holding form, clocking a 13.09sec in the 110m hurdles to become the third fastest in the event in 2010.

Following their strong performance here in Guangzhou, Chinese athletes will also likely compete in London for medals in archery, shooting, rowing and a host of lesser sports where they are trained professionally by the state.

"In major team sports like football, volleyball and basketball, we are still underperforming and (some of) our men's teams are in decline," Duan said.

"In many sports there is still a marked difference between us and world leading teams so we need to be sober in preparing for the London Games."

AFP