Croatian swimmers jumped into the pool in the Water Cube Wednesday morning after a long journey on Tuesday, but the team's star Duje Draganja was absent as the Olympic silver medalist chose to sleep in the Olympic Village.
Ten athletes and two coaches came into the National Aquatic Center, dubbed as Water Cube nine o'clock this morning. About one and a half hour later, they finished the training at the Olympic swimming competition venue.
According to Sasa Impric, who is slated to take part in the men's 200-meter individual medley race at the Beijing Olympics, they just arrived in Beijing last night after a 10-hour flight from Croatian capital Zagreb.
Monika Babok, a 17-year-old freestyle sprinter said there were a total of 11 swimmers in the Croatian team, but Draganja was still sleeping and missed the training.
Draganja, 25, was the runner-up in the men's 50-meter race at the Olympic Games four years ago and claimed the silver in the event at the 2005 World Aquatic Championships in Montreal, Canada.
Draganja is going to race in the 50-meter freestyle, the 100-meter freestyle and the 4x100-meter medley relay during the Games.
Since opening to the Olympians on July 27, Water Cube has welcomed athletes from more than 10 countries such as Romania, Belgium, New Zealand and Japan.
After approving the facilities in Beijing, the 31-member Japanese swimming squad led by Olympic champion Kosuke Kitajima flew to the South Korean island of Jeju on Tuesday to finish their training for the Games.
(Xinhua News Agency July 30, 2008)