Chinese Shooting Team Left for Munich World Cup

China's shooting team left for Munich World Cup Final, a shooting match to be held Nov. 14 at a sub-Olympic level. All members of the Chinese team are Olympians back from the past 2000 Olympics held earlier in Sydney.

By games ruling, only the top nine shooters on world circuit and the first top three shooting Olympians have the qualification to compete for the Munich World Cup. Among the Chinese shooting Olympians are included Olympic gold medallist Yang Ling, Tao Luna, Cai Yalin and other first-rate shooters like Gao Jing, Zhao Yinghui and Ren Jie. Since close of the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the Chinese shooting team had long been away from practicing shooting until the beginning of this month because of many social activities undertaken at home, told Sun Shenwei, head coach of the Chinese shooting team. But Zhao Yinghui keeps in good form as the only exception for she ceases no practicing after getting back from Sydney, Sun added. Wang Yifu, silver medallist back from the Sydney Olympics, has ceased to be a member of the team for preparing lessons to recruit himself for advanced study in Tsinghua University.

But things will not stop there. When Munich World Cup Final is over the Chinese shooters will have to go through four to eight years' hard training in a bid to fight for the 2008 Olympics title. A change will inevitably be made to the team's lineup when it comes the time for some veterans to bid farewell as retirees to their counterparts in the team.

People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/