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With less than two months to go before the Beijing Olympic Games, DANIEL MOTHOWAGAE looks at the country's prospects in China and whether they will choke on the big stage, as usual.

THEIR recent performance at the Central African Athletics Senior Championships in Ethiopia can be used as a yardstick to gauge Team South Africa’s readiness for the Beijing Olympics.

South Africa retained their top spot on the continent, following a 22-medal haul during the track and field competition in Addis Ababa last week.

With this in mind much is expected from South African athletes to bring more medals home when they take on the best in the world at the Games in China.

Since South Africa’s return to the Olympic Games in 1992, the country has seen a mixed bag of successes at the quadrennial showpiece.

South Africa finished 43 at the last Games in Athens in 2004, with six medals overall – a gold, three silvers and two bronze.

This feat was an improvement on the five-medal achievements at the Atlanta 1996 and Sydney 2000 events.

The three gold medals amassed at the Atlanta Games remains a record for Team South Africa.

With strong African contenders, Kenya and Morocco, expected to take their top athletes to China, South Africa is in for a big test.

Africa will have direct competition from the likes of the US, Russia, Australia, the UK and Italy – the top dogs of international athletics.

Seasoned campaigners such as Mbulaeni Mulaudzi and Ryk Neethling are once more the South African hopefuls expected to translate their high rankings into medals at the showpiece, from August 8 to 24.

Mulaudzi has already set the tone with a silver medal at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Spain in March.

The 800m Limpopo-born runner is set to meet his match when he goes up against Sudanese sensation Kaki Khamis Abubaker.

Long jumper Khotso Mokoena hinted that he was ready to take Beijing by storm.

The former world junior long- jump champion threw down the gauntlet with a gold performance at the Indoor Championships in Spain in March. It is on the basis of this performance that Mokoena is now tipped to be our trumpcard in Asia.

Veteran hammer-thrower Chris Harmse set a new record of 77.72m en route to his triumph in Addis Ababa. He also earned his Beijing qualifier with a gold medal in the process.

With the likes of Geraldine Pillay among the tried and tested who are struggling to show old form, Isabel le Roux has made her way up as the next best thing in the women’s 200m.

There has also been steady progress from Louis ‘LJ’ van Zyl, Ockert Cilliers and Ter de Villiers in the 400m hurdles.

So far, only 14 track and field athletes have confirmed their participation at the Games as qualification is still in progress and the final submission by Athletics South Africa is expected early in July.

In aquatics, the country will again pin their hopes on swimmers Neethling and Roland Schoeman. Neethling won gold in Athens while Schoeman is listed third in the current world rankings.

South Africa’s Olympic medal contenders are: Mulaudzi (800m); Mokoena (long jump); Neethling and Schoeman (swimming); Harmse (hammer), Hendrick Ramaala and Norman Dlomo (marathon); Ruben Ramolefi (3 000m steeplechase) and Jackson Chauke (boxing).

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