The Chinese squad was not the squad which won the women's softball silver medals in the Atlanta Olympic Games and a podium finish would be a satisfactory result next year in Sydney, top official of the Chinese Softball Association (CSA) said on Thursday.

"From technical point of view, the reshuffled Chinese squad is not as good as the one in 1996 Olympic Games," said CSA vice president Yang Jiangzhong.

But Yang claimed he was not speaking in a downgraded tune for the 2000 Sydney Games for the Olympics finalists, who were a combination of middle-aged veterans and inexperienced younger players.

"The target for a medal is not a low-pitched words," Yang said.

It is apparent that the national team for the continental event has nothing to compare with the team of three years ago, as China only concluded six veterans from overseas leagues.

"The squad in Atlanta Games was on its peak in that age group. But now, most of the capped players are struggling to find their forms while the younger ones are learning."

The 1996 national squad averaged 27 years old, and most of the players of that runners-up team had retired or went abroad.

"But our young players are improving. They are dynamic and full of hopes on the fields of the Olympics," he stressed.

With eight teams having qualified for the 2000 Olympics, China is bracketed along with the United States, Australia and Japan as the favorite medal finishers, with the others, like Canada, Cuba, Italy and New Zealand, just on-runners.

"The Sydney Olympics will be the toughest competition for China, " said the Chinese head coach Liu Yaming. "We can not just sleep on the previous glories."

Liu tagged Olympic champion the United States and Australia as the first-classed contenders for the title, while Japan and China are ranked in the second echelon.

"The United States will be the best team in Sydney, and Australia have made great improvements in recent years. The bronze medal is what we are setting eyes on," Liu said.