Superstars on Display at Asian Games

밆on뭪 underestimate the Asian Games.?

The level of athletes at the Asian Games is certainly on par with that of the Olympic Games.

For example, consider the 뱏ueen?of women뭩 diving, Guo Jingjing (25). The winner of two gold medals at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, Guo, is a star of China who is also famous for her beauty.

Another big star is Liu Xiang (23), the 밽olden bullet?of China. Liu set the world record in the 110 meters hurdles (12.88 seconds) this year, the first time in 13 years, the record has been broken, and has swept gold medals in various international competitions including the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. He is at the center of interest due to the fact that Asians have been traditionally weak in track and field events.

A related person of the Chinese team said, 밚iu Xiang is always mentally prepared for big games. He performs better when the competition is stronger.?

Indonesia뭩 Taufik Hidayat (25) is the 밻mperor of the shuttlecock.?He won gold medals in both the 2004 Athens Olympic Games and the 2005 IBF World Championship.

The star of Japanese swimming, Kosuke Kitajima (24), is aiming for gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. He won the men`s 100m and 200m breaststroke in the 2004 Olympics.

Liu Chunhong (20, China) of women뭩 weightlifting is also an athlete to keep your eyes on. She set three world records in Athens, winning the women`s 63-69 kg division.

Iran뭩 밾uman crane,?Hossein Rezazadeh (28), who won two consecutive Olympic gold medals in the men`s over 105 kg division, is setting out to prove once again that he is the strongest man in the world.

The Korean archery team, the strongest in the world, also must not be left out. The Korean team, including Park Seong-hyun (23) who won two gold medals in Athens, is aiming to sweep all the archery events.

bluesky@donga.com