Once dubbed "steel roses", China's female soccer team hopes the Beijing Olympics can be a springtime to restore prestige and restart blooming.
Ma Xiaoxu, the 20-year-old striker nicknamed China's "female Wayne Rooney" for her talent and temper, is expected to lead the Roses in the forefront for their Olympic campaign.
Last year Ma rolled on the pitch in agony after she was injured in a friendly with the Kiwis. The damage to her right knee kept Ma sidelined for more than half a year.
But the 2006 AFC Player of the Year finally won the uphill battle to return for the Beijing Games and is poised to boost the team's morale in the run-up to the Olympics.
"If Ma can play the two friendlies against New Zealand, she will definitely join the Olympic Games," said Shang Ruihua, coach of the women's team.
For Pu Wei, former captain of the Chinese team, the Beijing Olympic Games is a magnet to pull her back to the soccer pitch after hiding away from the sport for a few months.
The 28-year-old joined the national squad 10 years ago when she was only 17. She has been part of the "steel roses" to bring the country a bunch of glories, including the runners-up in 1999 FIFA World Cup, 2002 Asian Games, 2003 Asian Cup, and the champion of 2006 Asian Cup.
However, a disappointed Pu chose to retire from the chaotic women's team not long after the 2007 World Cup, when China failed to make it to the semi-finals after losing out to Norway.
But less than a year later, Pu was called back by new head coach Shang Ruihua, who openly declared "the national team needs Pu Wei."
Then back she was in the roster to prepare for the Asian Cup. On May 28, she was sent to play in the match against Vietnam. Though it was just a 10-minute appearance, Pu has demonstrated she was still an important player in the national team.
The Asian Cup was surely not Pu's ultimate goal. In her eyes, the Beijing Olympic Games is far more important.
"When the national team needs me, I have the strong impetus to come back and play," she said.
The Beijing Games is Pu's third and probably last Olympic voyage. The previous two, in 2000 and 2004, left her nothing more than regrets as China didn't win any medals on both events.
Coincidentally, just before the finals of the Beijing Olympic women's football tournament on August 20, Pu will embrace her 28th birthday. Making it into the final and winning a gold medal would be the most desired birthday gift for her.
(Xinhua News Agency, July 23, 2008)