China announces largest-ever team for Guangzhou Asian Games

BEIJING - EIJING - Chinese sports authorities have announced the country’s largest-ever delegation for an international sporting event, as Beijing aims to defend its gold medal and medal tally titles at the coming Guangzhou Asian Games.

“We want our athletes to show their fighting spirit and sportsmanship at the Asian Games and maintain our leading position in the rankings,” the China Daily quoted Duan Shijie, chef-de-mission of the Chinese delegation and China’s vice sports minister, as saying at the ceremony announcing the huge, 1,454-member delegation.

“As the host, we will also ensure a clean team with no drug cases. We consider the Asian Games an important part of our preparation for the 2012 London Oympic Games,” he added.

Since the ninth Asian Games in 1982, China has dominated the medal rankings. At the last Asiad, in Doha four years ago, China claimed 165 gold medals, 88 silver and 63 bronze.

The Asian Games is believed to be the largest-scale sporting event in the world. Besides the 28 Olympic sports, it also involves 14 non-Olympic sports, including wushu, cricket, rugby and chess.

In Guangzhou, 35 Olympic champions will lead China’s 977 athletes.

The Olympic champions include men’s hurdler Liu Xiang, table tennis star Wang Liqin, badminton’s Lin Dan and women’s trampolinist He Wenna.

With an average age of 24, the young team will take part in 447 events in 41 sports.

The 16th Asian Games will be staged from Nov 12 to27 in Guangzhou, the capital city of southern China’s Guangdong province.

It will attract about 11,700 athletes from 45 countries and regions who will compete for 476 gold medals. (ANI)