The Indonesian Cycling Association (ISSI) rates the chance of qualifying for the Beijing Olympics as 50 percent for its women's team and 40 percent for the men.

"However, we will give our best in shaping up the cyclists and are optimistic that they can snap spots at the Olympics," team manager Wahyudi Hidayat was quoted Thursday by local newspaper The Jakarta Post as saying.

ISSI is currently training eight cyclists on a mountainous plateau in Subang, West Java. They have been training since January and are expected to travel to Japan next month for the Asian cycling championships.

The event, which will run from April 15 to 17, also provides slots for the Olympics in August.

Among the Indonesian hopefuls is Uyun Muzizah, who won three gold medals during last year's Southeast Asian Games in Thailand. However, Uyun will be an underdog in the Asian event.

She is one of only two women's cyclists on the team, the other being Santia Trikusuma. The men's lineup consists of Tonton Susanto, Samai, Ryan Ariehan, Fatahillah, Asep Suryana and Yudo Sasongko.

"Hopefully, I can win the race so that I can go to the Olympics," said Ryan, the gold medalists at the 2007 SEA Games.

(Xinhua News Agency February 29, 2008)