Liu Xiang leads Chinese squad at East Asian Games
(AP)
Updated: 2005-10-27 14:41

Meanwhile, Xing Huina, the 10,000-meter champion at Athens who is also scheduled to appear in Macau, saw her 1,500-meter gold rescinded after she elbowed her nearest challenger.

China also boasts depth at the pool. Athens 100-meter breaststroke gold medalist Luo Xuejuan is competing, as is diver Guo Jingjing, who bagged two golds at the 2004 Games. Luo is coming off one gold and two silvers at the national games.

Shooting and weightlifting are other Chinese stalwart events. In shooting, Olympic champions Jia Zhanbo and Du Li are in the lineup. Olympic gold medalist Chen Yanqing, first in the 58-kilogram category at Athens, is part of a squad of decorated weightlifters.

The Macau East Asian Games offer a testing ground for China's next generation of sports stars just three years before the Beijing Games.

Among the rising stars: 13-year-old diver Yuan Peilin and 15-year-old swimmer Yang Jieqiao.

Yuan edged by Olympic synchronized diving champion Li Ting to win the 10-meter platform gold medal at the national games. Yang clinched gold in the 400-meter and 800-meter freestyle.

NBA star Yao Ming is skipping Macau, but one to watch is Yi Jianlian, who's been touted as an NBA prospect.

China is holding back its top tennis players, giving its second-tier talent a shot. China has three women in the world's top 50 _ Peng Shuai, Zheng Jie and Li Na _ but none are showing up in Macau.

China's toughest competitors at the medals table are likely to be South Korea and Japan. Rounding out the nine-nation roster are Chinese Taipei, Guam, Hong Kong, North Korea, Mongolia and host Macau.

Japanese swimmers Genki Imamura and Yuko Nakanishi are strong contenders. Imamura came third in the 200-meter breaststroke at the 2005 World Championships while Nakanishi won bronze in the 200-meter butterfly at Athens.