All eyes on Liu Xiang
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Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang will prove at the Guangzhou Asian Games if he is still good enough for one more Olympic Games.
As the brightest-star of the 71 Chinese track and field competitors, the Athens Olympic champion aims for his third Asian Games gold medal and he understands that it could be his last chance to prove his capability for London 2012 Olympics.
The former world and Olympic champion pulled up lame in a preliminary 110 meters hurdles heat at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, stunning the whole nation.
Liu made a comeback in September 2009 after a right Achilles surgery in United States and a year of rehabilitation. But he only finished seventh in the men's 60m hurdles at 2010 World Indoor Championships in Doha, Qatar in March.
For his third Asian Games, the 27-year-old Shanghai-born predicted a modest time of around 13.30 seconds, which is far away from his Asian record of 12.88, which also stood as a world record until just before the Beijing Olympics.
In Guangzhou, threat might come from Shi Dongpeng, who took his first career win over the more heralded teammate in the Shanghai Diamond League in May 2010.
China is targeting at top spot in track and field, which the nation had kept for the last six Asian Games. Four years ago in Doha, China led the athletics medal count with 14 gold medals but only managed two bronze medals at Beijing Olympics.
While Liu or Shi can only bring in one gold, women's shot put, discus and long-distance running athletes are more reliable.
Pole vaulter Li Caixia cleared an impressive 4.50 meters in September and teammate Li Ling's 4.40m is the second best of the season in Asia. Zhang Wenxiu holds hammer's top eight best result of the season.
China's biggest opponents are Japan and Bahrain. Reigning men's 1500m world champion and 800m bronze medallist Yusuf Saad Kamal, who was born in Kenya, is one of the big names.
Maryam Jamal is the first Bahraini woman to have won gold with 1,500m at Osaka world championships and she defended the title in Berlin in 2009. Jamal will go in the 800m and 1,500m in Guangzhou.
Javelin thrower Yukifumi Murakami, the captain of Japanese delegation, is Japan's biggest hope. Murakami won two silver medals at the two previous editions and he is aiming at his first Asaid gold after taking second place in last year's world championships.
Japanese sprinters have the season-best results in Asia in both men's and women's 100m and 200m.
Indian Mandeep Kaur and Tintu Luka are favored for the women's 400m and 800m titles.
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