For ambitious Cuban women volleyballers, the Olymic competition has already begun.
Less than 24 hours after they left the training camp in Japan, the Cuban women have appeared Wednesday on the training court in Beijing.
"We're here for the gold medal but not for getting close to it," Cuba's head coach Antonio Perdomo Estrella told Xinhua after a prolonged training session at the Beijing Sports University.
The training was scheduled from 3. p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, but it ended till 5:40 p.m. when Perdomo finally called for stop.
"Such a long training session won't be a problem for my players," said Perdomo. "They are in very good shape and there's no injury. I hope they can keep the good condition through the Games."
Besides regular trainings, the Cuban women can also find a good balance between at-court performances and relaxation.
"Most of them turned to Internet to talk with their families and boy friends at the Olympic Village and I'm not worried that they will feel bored," said the assistant coach Eugenio George Lafita.
The Cuban women won three consecutive Olympic gold medals in 1992, 1996 and 2000 and even collected a bronze medal at Athens 2004.
However, in general, the team's golden era in and around the 1990s is fast fading into the distance after several of its stars from the Sydney Games retired, including the great Regla Torres -- named volleyball's top female player of the 20th century.
In 2007 Perdomo took the reins of the team, which are trying to regain the form they had with a new crop of up-and-coming athletes.
Cuba placed 4th at the 2007 world cup and it was the runners-up of the just-finished World Grand Prix.
The coach named China, Russia, Brazil and Italy the strongest opponents on their way to championship.
"We lost several matches against China at the beginning of this year, but we beat them at the World Grand Prix in Japan, which is a great inspiration for our team," said Perdomo.
Twelve women's teams are divided into two groups to compete in the Preliminary Round of the Olympic tournaments in Beijing that run through August 9-17. The knockout stages run from August 19 to 23.
Cuba is grouped with China, the United States, Japan, Poland, and Venezuela. Their first match is against Poland.
(Xinhua News Agency July 31, 2008)