China's synchronized swimming head coach Masayo Imura said  on Friday that the Chinese team are aiming for a medal at the Olympics.

Chinese twins duet Jiang Wenwen and Jiang Tingting won the silver at the Olympic qualifications tournament on Friday with a peacock-themed routine performed with outstanding synchronization.

The twins scored 96.083 points and were about 1.5 points shy of the reigning Spanish duo of Gemma Mengual and Andrea Fuentes.

"We trained very hard to reach this level. The silver could help enhance our hopes for the Olympics," said Jiang Wenwen.

"The twins are making progress and so is the whole Chinese team," said Imura.

"The Chinese synchro swimmers lack medal experience because they have barely earned any. Compared with other teams like Japan, they still lack experience," Imura added.

"We all know it would be difficult to get a medal, but that's our goal," she said.

The seasoned coach said she would also ramp up training in the last 100 days to make her swimmers stronger and better. "The Chinese can also capitalize on all the favorable environment of being the host country," she said.

"For the Olympics, we will make the routines more complex, and administer more changes to the choreography," Imura said.

Imura, dubbed as the "godmother" of the Japanese synchronized swimming, has been coaching Japan's synchro swimming team since 1978, helping her swimmers to win eight Olympic medals over the past 30 years.

The 58-year-old came to coach in China after the 2006 Doha Asian Games in which China dethroned long-time Asian champion Japan in both duet and team competitions. Although her decision came under criticism from her country, her expertise and experience has been seen as a boon for the Chinese synchro swimmers.

"She is a very stringent coach, and she also takes very good care of us," said Jiang Wenwen at the news conference on Friday.

"The coach often reminded us to work on our body-building. She really helps us to improve stability in water," Jiang added.

"The girls have perfect body forms as synchro swimmers, but they need to gain strength, which is a must for the strenuous sport," Imura said.

The broad-minded Imura stressed that there should not be nationality boundaries for coaches. "The Chinese swimmers need me to help them develop their potentials to the full," she said.

Imura said the twins were frail before she came, but they are in better form now. "The girls have gained five kilos since the 2007 world championships," she said.

The Jiang's sisters placed the fourth in the 2007 Melbourne World Championships, which was seen as a breakthrough for China's synchro swimming in the international arena.

For this tournament, China didn't send team swimmers except the twins as it has qualified as the Olympic host nation. "Since we have got the berth, I think we can hold back what we have a little," said Imura.

"There will be elements of modernity in our Olympic routines, but we have to be careful not to disclose the details till the Games, because originality is important for the competition," she said.

(Xinhua News Agency April 18, 2008)